Harry Stidolph and the Call of the Moon
by Galatea Griffiths
Summary: At the tender age of eight, Harry Potter encounters something that will change his life forever. Armed with a werewolf bite, a family, and the Lunae Tristitiam Tribe, how will Harry Stidolph face his first year of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?
1. Prologue

_Prologue_

As he returned to his office from a Divination post interview, Albus Dumbledore was tired to say the least, but a well deserved tired nonetheless. The mangy bat Sybill Trelawney did actually prove to have the power of Sight, and brought forth a ray of hope in ending this long and tiring war:

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches ... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies ... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not ... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives ... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies ..._"

Funny how a seemingly silly applicant for a Divination post at Hogwarts could prove to be worthwhile at the last minute. But as he prepared himself for bed, and as he used his Deluminator to shut off his office and bedroom lights, another thought occurred to Dumbledore about another prophecy. One that was created by the same prophet Trelawney, who Dumbledore will make sure can start teaching by next semester. He now owes it to her after all. Nevertheless, the second prophecy seemed a little more disturbing:

"_The one with the power will stray from the path of the Light, and shall succeed on the path of sorrow."_

Now what on Earth could that possibly mean? Perhaps it was just more gibberish, and yet in the back of Albus' mind, something prodded at him with the claim that this prophecy could mean something entirely different against what Dumbledore first heard escape the Seer's lips. When Albus asked about the second prophecy, however, Trelawney claims to not remember such a thing which is expected of course, but unfortunate.

As he tucked himself under his bed sheets Dumbledore finally decided that he would come up with a plan to ensure that the first prophecy comes to pass, and if the latter prophecy truly does come to pass (which Dumbledore doubts it would), than he could deal with it as easily as a fly swatter can deal with a fly.

**AN:**

**Hello, all you lovely readers! I must confess, it's been a long while since I've posted anything on this site, but I have missed it, and I am back with a vengeance! Muahahaha! Anyway, I hope you all will R&R despite the rather weak prologue. Trust me, I have better chapters coming! In case you haven't figured it out yet, this is a story where Harry is bitten by a werewolf and becomes part of a werewolf community before he starts attending Hogwarts. I may or may not write all seven years, but I at least know how Harry's first year is going to go. There will be a lot of OC's and Remus Lupin probably won't come into the picture until 3rd year just like the normal series. If you don't like all the new characters I introduce, then too bad, so sad, this is not the story for you. There will be some original characters like Hermione and Ron, etc. so it's not like I'm replacing them. Now that all of the explaining is out of the way, please R&R! I love hearing from fellow authors and readers! **


	2. Chapter 1

_June 19, 1989_

If ever young Harry was scared to death of his big, beefy Uncle Vernon, it would be now. Of all the days Harry could have screwed up on, it had to be today. His cousin Dudley's ninth birthday, and at his birthday party no less! It was as if the entire event played in slow motion not even five minutes ago. Dudley and his friends picking on Harry again, Harry getting mad, Aunt Petunia bringing in Dudley's larger-than-life birthday cake (as usual, it was indeed larger than life), and Harry somehow making the cake levitate on its own, and break onto Dudley's thick head. Harry didn't miss a beat. He ran out the front door so fast it was as if he was a blur, but Uncle Vernon with his extra belt held tightly in his meaty paws, ran out just as fast after his nephew.

"FREEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAK!" Uncle Vernon screamed at the top of his lungs. "GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW AND TAKE WHAT'S COMING TO YOU!" To Harry, though, taking what's coming to him didn't sound like a good plan thank you very much. At least let him live to see _his_ ninth birthday! Running as fast and as long as his tiny legs could carry him, Harry began to head for the far playground where Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon took Dudley and his kids to play a few hours before.

Looking behind him, Harry could see big Uncle Vernon start giving up, but he wasn't taking any chances. With the full moon now high above him, Harry could see perfectly clearly, and was able to run straight to the playground without tripping on any rocks or snagging his loose pants on any branches that hung menacingly close to the small boy. It wasn't until he reached the teeter totters that Harry finally slowed down and then stopped running altogether. Panting, Harry stopped by the swings and sat down to take a breath. The playground is completely abandoned now – small toys and jackets lay forgotten by their tiny owners throughout the day, heck even a week! Even from here, Harry could recognize a jacket that had been left here since the previous Saturday. As Harry's breath caught up with him, a gentle breeze began to blow towards Harry and immediately he knew something was off. The breeze blowing towards him smelled of blood. Normally, the only blood Harry would smell was that of his own whenever Uncle Vernon gave him a generous beating once or twice a week. But he knows he's not bleeding. So who is?

Standing up from the swing, Harry made his way towards the play structure and noticed liquid dripping down and off of one of the slides. He carefully touched it, smelled it, then recoiled and rubbed his now bloody hand onto his baggy clothes. Looking down, Harry saw that the blood wasn't just on the play structure, but instead led into a forest nearby that Harry never noticed before. Common sense told him to stay away, but perhaps following the blood was better than going back to Number 4 Privet Drive. Young Harry shuddered at the thought of going back to that horrid place and what awaited him there, thus, began to follow the trail.

After going past the forest limits, it wasn't long before he found the source of the blood. A large dog had been taken down, obviously a pet of a family nearby. The corpse was alone, and no predator to claim it, so Harry snuck closer to investigate further. The dog had blonde fur, and a large head, but given his lack of education, Harry couldn't deduce what breed of dog it was. Suddenly, from behind him, Harry heard a growling and slowly turned around to find a bigger dog. Much bigger.

Harry's eyes widened at the sight. This new dog before him was fearsome to say the least. Its short black fur hung close to the body and went out in all directions, looking to all the world like jagged spikes. The teeth, now red with blood, looked about sharp enough to cut clean through multiple layers of fat, muscle, and bone. Looking down, Harry could see that that could be said the same for the claws as well. Harry looked back up into the dog's bright orange eyes and then realized that this is no ordinary dog. **This is a werewolf.**

For some reason, the werewolf hadn't attacked Harry yet, just growled at him and glared, as if pondering what to do with the small child who found him and the dead dog. Harry, sensing his danger, stammered to the wolf,

"Sorry...uh...didn't mean to interrupt your d-...meal." The wolf stood from four legs to two, as if trying to intimidate Harry more. "You can eat me if you want," Harry said, "Just please kill me quickly. It's better than what my uncle would do." At this, the werewolf went back down to four legs and began sniffing at the boy. Harry instinctively stiffened at the sudden closeness of the werewolf. The werewolf noticed this stiffness and backed off, which surprised Harry.

"You...you're not going to k-...eat me?" Harry stammered once more. The werewolf walked around Harry and began eating at the dog again, then looked back at Harry as if to say _I already have my dinner_. "Oh...of c-...course. Right. I'll just leave you then. Um..." Harry went to leave, but was stopped by the werewolf's growling, obviously telling him not to move. "Or I'll just stay here," Harry mumbled.

It took a while before the werewolf was done with the dog. It walked away and Harry looked back to see that, indeed, nothing but bloody bones were left. The wolf then growled at Harry again and motioned something with his head. Harry didn't quite understand, though, and just stood there looking confused. The werewolf then rolled its eyes (which also surprised Harry), walked behind Harry and began pushing him with his head. Harry began walking and the werewolf took the lead, thus making Harry understand that it wanted Harry to follow it.

Deeper into the forest they went. The more the two walked, the more Harry began to get tired. But he didn't dare yawn for fear of angering the beast who walked before him. Therefore, he remained silent. At last, the two came upon a clearing where, far off, Harry could spot dim firelight. Looking back between the werewolf and the firelight, Harry realized that that must be the werewolf's home. But why were they here?

Harry's question was soon answered when suddenly, the werewolf turned on Harry and rushed at him, pushing Harry down onto the ground, his bloody paws trapping the boy's tiny arms beneath them. Frightened, Harry tried to hold in his cry of terror, but then screamed as loud as he possibly could. Louder then whenever Uncle Vernon would beat him. Louder then when Dudley and his gang would beat up Harry on the school playground. The werewolf's teeth sunk into Harry's left shoulder without any trouble, and for Harry, it was a nightmare.

Then, almost as suddenly as when it jumped him, the werewolf retracted his bite and leapt off of Harry, leaving the boy shaken and scared. Did the werewolf just bite him? What was going to happen now? Now even more tired then before, Harry tried to get back up and kept his right hand on his bleeding shoulder but failed, and only managed to fall back onto the ground and pass out completely.

**AN:**

**Yay, chapter 1! Believe me when I say that this chapter (and some others after) has been really hard to put together. I struggled with this one many times, but here we are! Please R&R, and don't worry, there's more to come! Cheers!**


	3. Chapter 2

The poor boy has been unconscious for three days now, which is normal for a newcomer to Hell. Richmond silently chuckled to himself at the thought of his Tribe being Hell, for in the Alpha Male's eyes it is quite the opposite. The ancient sun gazed warmly down upon the Tribe's camp near Little Whinging in Surrey and the camp itself was busying itself contentedly with the daily chores. Gamma males and females were busy cooking meals, doing the laundry, and/or coming and going to their work. Over by the Beta Female's tent, Richmond could see the Beta Female herself, Guadalupe, teach the young pups something about different forest berries from what he could hear (the children, of course, is what made the Alpha bother to think of young Harry Potter in the first place). Looking around, Richmond couldn't find his wife anywhere, but knowing her stubborn and compassionate nature, he knew she must be near the newcomer, despite Richmond's warnings.

"What caution?" Penny asked after he made such warnings when they first saw the boy. "He won't do any harm, and besides, someone has to look after him!"

Indeed, now that Richmond thought about it, perhaps the Alpha Female did have a right to throw Richmond's advice to the wind. The boy was badly malnourished and bruised from what he could remember. In addition Artie (the young man who bit and brought in said child) reported something that chilled him to the bone.

"He smelled of all kinds of alcohol and liquor, as well as the rough smell of a leather belt and cigar smoke from past burns. I couldn't just let him go back to a life like that, couldn't I?" Both Penny and Richmond reassured Artie that his heart was in the right place, but now what to do with the young wizard?

Penny wants to adopt him. How absurd.

For one thing, this is Harry Potter they're talking about. **Harry. Potter.** The boy who lived! His name is known internationally for the defeat of the infamous You-Know-Who! To adopt him would mean to change his name from Harry _Potter_ to Harry _Stidolph_, something that would be considered a crime to the Wizarding World and its media. As if his werewolves don't have other problems. Then there's the simple fact that werewolves can't adopt children, not even children who are also werewolves. Sure, the law is ridiculous, but Richmond has tried so hard to clear the names of all his werewolves who have been accused of crimes they never committed. To commit this crime would surely set them back. And what about the other pups? The little ones already in the Tribe don't have parents, so why is Harry Potter so important?

Because, as Penny pointed out, unlike the other little ones, Harry's marks of abuse show that he had never had any parental guidance to begin with, which seemed odd to Richmond Stidolph. Why would this child celebrity be forced to grow up in a home that would be filled with such hate for him? Who was the idiot who decided that and why?

Pondering for what to do, Richmond found himself facing the medic tent, where young Harry and his wife waited inside. Harry was still unconscious, though with the proper healing thanks to the Beta Male Charlie, he barely had any bruises and he doesn't look so malnourished. Penny sat on a rickety chair beside him, affectionately stroking the boy's raven black hair. "He looks like you," Penny noted to Rich who now stands beside her, "black hair and all. If we could rid of the glasses and the scar, we could pull it off." Richmond held in the groan that threatened to escape his throat and instead reprimanded, "It is illegal for werewolves to adopt children. Penny, you know this!" Penny faced her mate with a snarl on her pretty porcelain face and snapped, "The law has never really stopped you before. Why should now make any difference?"

"Because we're the Alphas, Penny. Everything we do has an impact on the Tribe, from the pups to the Gammas, to the Betas. We can't just think for ourselves here. If we go to them and say that we adopted Harry Potter, what kind of response do you think they would make?"

"I agree, we won't make everyone happy, but even the pups have come to see Harry. Everyone has seen the scars, the bruises, the burns. At least our pups have had the Betas to look after them. Harry has had nobody up until now. He needs a family, a mother and a father, to guide him and to love him. We could be that family." Richmond shook his head in aggravation and countered with a lawyer's aggression, "We can easily have a son of our own. Or even a daughter! Why should we bother adopting when we're both perfectly and biologically possible to have our own children?"

"Listen to yourself!" Penny shrieked, her dark brown eyes now with a fiery glow, "Are we not meant to protect every wolf in our Tribe? What if the only way to protect this boy is to adopt him and call him our own? The Tribe can keep the secret. We've kept secrets for years!" She suddenly stood from her seat so that she is now about eye-to-eye with her husband, her dark mahogany hair slightly tussled from the feat. "Richmond, please," Penny pleaded, her anger gone and replaced with desperation. "You know as well as I do that we don't have the time or the patience to raise a baby. Harry is only eight years old, going on nine. It's a perfect place to start. We could protect him from whatever forced him to be with whatever horrendous family he was with as well as protect the Tribe from the forced attention that will be directed towards Harry Potter." Damn, she's right. If the world found out that Harry Potter was a werewolf, and a member of the Lunae Tristitiam Tribe, then there was no doubt that everybody would stop at nothing for their heads. If Harry Stidolph came into existence and they kept his werewolf identity a secret, then the world wouldn't think twice.

But adoption, albeit illegally, isn't just about the process. Richmond turned his gaze from Penny to the sleeping child. He always thought he would be a father, but not like this. He imagined his own child growing in Penny's belly, a child with his black hair and her dark brown eyes, or her lustrous dark red hair and his green eyes. A child whom he and Penny raised through blood, sweat, and tears. As if reading his mind, Penny continued to argue, "We can still raise him as if he's our own. We can make it like the adoption doesn't mean a thing." Seeing as how he is now losing this battle, Richmond ran his hands through his hair and heaved a great big sigh. Finally, Richmond responded,

"Alright. We'll adopt him."


	4. Chapter 3

First his eyes fluttered, but his eyelids felt so heavy that his eyes immediately closed again. Then, he tried to force his eyes open, but to no avail. Finally, on the third try, Harry opened his eyes and forced his unconscious slumber away. Sitting up, Harry rubbed his eyes and subconsciously reached for his glasses to the right of his bed when he realized two things. One, his glasses weren't on his right like they'd normally be. Two, he can see without his glasses. _He can see without his glasses. _Gawking, Harry looked around and rubbed his eyes just to make sure. Opening his eyes again, Harry found that he can see perfectly clearly without his glasses now.

Laughing with delight, Harry observed an entirely new world around him and wondered if he was dreaming. He lay in a nice bed, with nice bed covers, and immediately Harry felt welcome upon brushing his hands along the inconsistent pattern of cloths and fabric. Harry looked out and saw that he is in a relatively large tent, with different wooden trays and glass bottles lying around. Harry moved to the edge of his bed and saw that there were other beds in the tent separated by large fabric sheets in between. To Harry, it looked like a sort of hospital for gypsies. Harry didn't exactly know what gypsies were, but since he took a glimpse at them from that one Disney movie he peeked at over cousin Dudley's shoulder one morning, he figured it was an accurate comparison.

Stretching his arms, Harry winced upon feeling the dormant pain wake up in his left shoulder, forcing Harry to recall the night he was bitten by the werewolf. What was going to happen to him now? Will he have to live in the wild, cold and hungry, like an animal? Getting out of his bed and looking around the hospital more, Harry decided that living on his own like an animal might not be likely. But if he's not going to live on his own then who will he live with? Other werewolves?

Suddenly, Harry stopped in his tracks. Halfway across the room, Harry almost fell over in complete surprise. Werewolves are real. _**Werewolves are real.**_ He remembered hearing about them in classes whenever the kids played a game other than Harry Hunting, but to him and everyone else, they were just fantasy. Something that doesn't (and shouldn't) exist. Yet now that he was bitten, and undoubtedly now a werewolf, Harry tried to think...what else could be out there? Sirens? Witches? Wizards?

Harry almost opened the tent flap lost in his paranoid thoughts when he suddenly heard voices coming from the other side of the flap. Panicked, Harry looked around the room, not wanting to get caught, and ran over to a dark corner to hide. Sure enough, in came a man and a woman, talking amongst themselves. The man, who stood in front of Harry's hiding spot, smelt of plants and black tea, which was odd to Harry, seeing as he can't smell anything this powerfully (unless you count Uncle Vernon's occasional cigar burns). Was this a part of the werewolf bite? His vision too, for that matter?

"And what exactly are we going to do about his scar? There's powerful Dark magic behind that scar, and it sure as Hell won't be easy to get rid of," said the man, snapping Harry back to the present. The boy continued watching from the shadows as the woman, running her fingers through her dark red hair as if she's lost in thought, replies,

"Perhaps there's some kind of potion that will add Light magic to the area? Balance it out, maybe?" The man only shrugged and replied, "If there is, I've never heard of it. I'll look into it, but I'm thinking a more direct approach. Somehow drawing all that Dark magic out of him."

"Strange how such a Light wizard as Harry Potter would have a mark like that on him," the woman noted. Harry Potter? Could they be talking about him? But he's just Harry. And what do they mean by Light magic and Dark magic? The man looked towards Harry's bed and asked in a surprised tone,

"Speaking of, where is the boy?" The woman looked to Harry's empty bed at this and Harry saw her eyes grow a little wider before calming down. She glanced around the room and sniffed the air (which also looked odd to Harry), before claiming, "His scent's recent. He couldn't have gone far. Oh, poor boy, I'm sure he must have loads of questions." The man walked towards the bed and sniffed the air around it before replying, "Well then, let's find him so we can answer them."

At this, Harry stiffened and tried to hold his breath so they wouldn't find him, but about five minutes into the search, the woman looked into Harry's hiding spot, smiled, and Harry knew he was caught. She looked to the man and claimed, "Richmond, I found him." The man soon joined the woman and now both were looking straight at Harry, despite the almost black shadow surrounding him. Frightened to death, Harry did his best to try to hide even further, but that didn't escape the adults' notice.

"It's all right, little one," the woman called softly. "We're not going to hurt you." She smiled warmly at Harry, giving him the impression of a mother, but he wouldn't be fooled. After all, didn't he live with Aunt Petunia for the first eight years of his life? The man also smiled at Harry, although somewhat awkwardly, but his smile wasn't what surprised Harry. Green eyes met green eyes, and for the first time in his life, Harry didn't feel so alone anymore. The woman noticed Harry staring at the man, and seemed to elbow him, prompting him to say something.

At this, the man's smile became more earnest, and he reached his hand out to Harry. "It's alright. You're safe here," whispered the man. Harry was very hesitant, but finally he accepted the man's hand and the man gently pulled him into the light. Both the man and the woman smiled down at Harry as they led him to some chairs nearby and Harry started to smile back.

"My name is Penny Stidolph," the woman introduced, then she gestured to the man, "and the teddy bear over there is Richmond Stidolph, my husband." Richmond glared at his nickname for a few moments before asking Harry, "How do you feel? Werewolf bites are tough to get through at first, so if you feel nauseous or anything, it's normal, but let us know." Harry frowned a bit at that, seeing as he hadn't felt better in years, and answered his feelings.

"That's not particularly normal, but it's not completely unusual either," explained Richmond, "Some humans are so sickly or so broken that the disease actually does more good than bad."

"So I was sick?" Harry asked, his face paling. Penny nodded sadly and reported, "Not just sick. Multiple broken ribs that had badly repaired themselves, not to mention other things. But the disease cured all that, so there's nothing to worry about!" Harry gave a sigh of relief. He really didn't want to bother these adults, especially when they were being so nice to him.

"Harry..." started Penny but she was interrupted by the boy, "How do you know my name?" Both adults looked at each other for a moment, as if in shock, before Richmond answered, "Perhaps we should explain from the beginning. Harry, what do you know of magic?"

Harry thought for a while, before answering, "Sorry, sir, I don't know much." Harry heard Penny mumble an 'Unbelievable' and turned to her, confused. Penny smiled at Harry in apology and said, "Magic is a force or sorts. You can use it to power yourself, others, or even the environment around you. It lives inside some people, and those people are witches and wizards. Richmond is a wizard." Harry looked back at Richmond in awe at that. Richmond cleared his throat nervously at the twinkling admiration in the boy's eyes and asked, "Harry, have you ever made things happen? Things you can't really explain?"

Harry was about to say no when the memories of Dudley's cake came to him, as well as other times when everything was his fault simply because he was a freak. The thought of being called a 'freak' again disturbed him, so Harry cautiously nodded yes. To his surprise, both Richmond and Penny smiled and Penny said, "Congratulations, Harry. You're a wizard."

Stunned, Harry looked to the both of them before he lost himself in thought. Wasn't he a freak? A terrible burden on the house of the Dursleys in Little Whinging, Surrey. The scape goat of the entire neighborhood. An outcast with a funny looking scar and too thin for his own good. The beating bag for Dudley's gang. The end of Uncle Vernon's beatings. Harry didn't even realize he was crying from the memories until Penny had swooped in and began hugging him. Richmond now stood with a look of concern on his face. Harry soon reciprocated the hug and realized that perhaps these adults were good.

After Harry was done pouring out his bottled up tears, Penny wordlessly invited Harry to sit on her lap which he accepted and Richmond sat on a chair close to Penny and Harry. After a few moments of silence, Richmond asked Harry, "Harry, would you like to learn more about magic?"

"Well, since I'm a wizard, I don't really have much choice, do I?" Harry replied. But then he added, "I would like to, though, I really would. Who will be teaching me?" From behind Harry's head, Penny answered, "All of us will teach you, Harry. You were bitten by a werewolf of the Lunae Tristitiam Tribe." Harry looked back to Penny, confused, before Richmond answered, "Lunae Tristitiam is latin for _'Sorrowful Moon'_. We're all werewolves, despite our magic or lack thereof. All other qualities in a human being, be it religion, race, gender, or the like, mean nothing to us."

"In other words," Penny added, "We're all one big family by bond. Do you understand us thus far, Harry?" Harry took a while before nodding and asked, "But how do you know my name?" Richmond and Penny looked at each other uncomfortably before Penny answered, "Harry, you must understand that, while magic is wonderful and presents numerous opportunities, there are some who take wrong opportunities rather than the right ones."

"Magic branches off into two main branches: Light and Dark. Light magic draws its power from your core and is easier to understand. That's why you'll find many wizards and witches of this world are Light. Dark magic is just as important," explained Richmond.

"Is it evil?"

"Of course not," replied the man, "Dark magic relies on the manipulation of the elements around us, and is harder to control. Both branches of magic are vital. But those who use either branch of magic can, in fact, turn very evil. Magic isn't evil. People can be." Harry nodded again and Richmond continued,

"Not too long ago, before you were born in fact, there was a terrible war between Light magic and Dark magic. The leader of the Light branch was, and still is, one Albus Dumbledore. The leader of the Dark branch was known as Lord Voldemort. Voldemort planned to..." Richmond hesitated at this as if doubting whether to finish the sentence or not, but soon made up his mind and finished, "Voldemort planned to kill non-magical folk, people who can't use magic. We like to call them Muggles. Voldemort also wanted to rid the world of the magical children of Muggles, called Muggleborns or Mudbloods. Albus Dumbledore, on the other hand, wanted to not only protect the Muggles and the Muggleborns, but also foolproof magic so that it eventually becomes nothing more than parlour tricks."

Harry scrunched up his face at that and remarked, "Neither of those sound good to me." Richmond nodded in understanding and replied,

"It's not hard to understand why they were at a stalemate for years. On Halloween night one year, Voldemort visited a family in Godric's Hollow. Why he went, nobody knows. He blasted himself into the home, killed the mother and father, and almost killed the only child. A one year old boy. But somehow, the baby wizard managed to defeat the evil wizard. That baby," Richmond pointed to the lightning shaped scar on Harry's forehead, "was you, Harry. Harry James Potter: the boy who lived."

If Harry didn't have the proof on his forehead, he wouldn't have believed it. But as Richmond gazed at Harry expectantly, waiting for a reply, Harry admitted that he would have to accept it for now. Penny took off where Richmond left off:

"But now that you are one of us, Harry, you have a choice. You don't have to be Harry Potter if you don't want to be." Harry turned back and asked Penny, "Why not?" Penny smiled and replied cautiously, as if afraid she might say something the wrong way, "Harry, some of the so-called Light wizards are not good at all. Being Harry Potter, you are a beacon for the Light. They'll be fighting over you like rabid wolves would over a freshly cooked ham." Before Harry could say any more, Richmond added,

"Being a part of this Tribe means thinking for everyone, not just yourself. I would understand if you want to keep your name just for your parents' sake, but the safety of our family would be in incredible peril." Frightened at the thought, a panicked Harry asked,

"What can I do?" Penny's smile grew bigger and she replied, "We could adopt you."

Harry looked back at Penny again, his eyes big as saucers. Adopted? Having a mother and a father to look after him? Harry felt his smile reached the moon and he eagerly nodded in acceptance. Triumphant, Richmond stood from his seat and said something about paperwork before leaving the tent. Not long after that, someone else came into the tent, a man much younger than Richmond. He smiled as he saw young Harry still in Penny's lap and said,

"Glad to see someone's awake." Penny smiled at the young man and introduced, "Harry, this is our Beta Male, Charlie. Charlie, Harry's agreed to be our adopted son." At this, Charlie's smile slightly fell and he replied, "That's...wonderful." Harry got off of Penny's lap and dumbly asked,

"Beta Male?" Charlie gave Harry a forced smile as he guided the young boy back to his hospital bed and clarified, "I'm next in line to become Alpha Male as well as the main Healer of the tribe." Harry looked more confused, but after Penny promised him to explain more during the adoption process, he wisely decided to drop it.

Charlie then began giving the final examination, just to see if Harry was well enough to leave the hospital tent. It was definitely not the standard one Harry had to take back at primary school. Unlike the one in primary school, Charlie tested Harry's jumps, leaps, stretches, and even his kicks. "Here in our Tribe, you need to learn how to fight physically as well as magically and intellectually. I'm just seeing how well you do now so that I know where to start with your fighting lessons," Charlie explained as Harry recovered from doing his last kick. Then there was the regular health examination: blood pressure, pupil check, etc. before Charlie finally gave the o.k. for Harry to go.

Penny guided Harry to the Alpha tent while she explained how the rankings in the Tribe work just as night was beginning to fall. When they went inside the Alpha tent, Harry was astounded. It looked so small from the outside, but once you step inside it's tremendously larger! There was enough room for at least 2 rooms, not counting the master's room, as well as a kitchen with a copper burner and a copper stove and refrigerator. There was a living room directly in front of Harry that held what looked to be a muggle TV set facing two loveseats, and far off to the right, Harry could smell different plants growing (one of which made his nose so sore that Harry was sure it would bleed). He could also hear distinct murmuring from inside that room and was hesitant to go inside but Penny soon guided him towards the mysterious room with the terrible smell.

Inside was Richmond and another, very dark man. They were currently standing near a desk of some kind, but all around the room was much stranger. Rows and rows of long garden pots lined the room, and it took Harry a few minutes to recover from all the different smells before he felt liquid running down his nose. In an instant, Penny was near him with tissues, and Harry was very grateful because of that. The man looked at Harry and said, "Ah, good. We're all here, then?" Both Richmond and Penny nodded and Harry followed the Stidolphs' lead. The mysterious man smiled like a maniac would and soon began casting spells around the room.

"Why is he doing that?" Harry whispered to Richmond. "It's a normal procedure for this kind of adoption process. Werewolves can't adopt legally, therefore the gentleman," Richmond said the word as if it was an insult to call him that, "here tonight will help us get what we need with the results we want. This, of course, entails transferring actual guardianship as well as magical guardianship. But since it's highly illegal to do this, the man is casting protective wards so that nobody, physically or magically, can interfere. It's a good habit to learn. You'll need to learn it soon." Harry nodded, trying to process all this information, before the man finished with his wards and said in a delightful voice,

"Alrighty, let's get started!"

* * *

Late that night, Albus Dumbledore felt a sharp pain in his magical core wake him up from his slumber. It was a pain unlike anything he felt before, as if something was ripping his core from someone else's. Gasping for air, Dumbledore struggled to reach his Deluminator, but as soon as his fingers grazed the trusty object, the pain was gone. Dumbledore hurriedly turned on his lights and pushed his covers off to stand. As he now stood next to his bed, Dumbledore tried to process what had just happened. Did someone attempt to kill him? If they did, then they failed miserably.

Quickly, Dumbledore rushed to check his wards, but when the protection wards turned out fine, Dumbledore only became more confused. Nobody was here, nobody tried to kill him. There was no poison in his system, of that he could be sure. He would have noticed by now. So, if nobody was trying to kill him, then what had happened? Processing exactly where the pain came from, Dumbledore could only speculate that something had attempted to damage his magical core, and perhaps instead settled for one of his magical links? Possibly, but which one? There were so many wizarding orphans for whom he was their magical guardian in all of Great Britain, after all.

Albus then realized...what if the now broken link was of that to Harry Potter? Dumbledore began rushing to check on the boy, but instead caught himself. Harry is supposed to have no contact with the magical world whatsoever until his eleventh birthday, under no circumstances. Should he break that rule now, just to see if his magical guardianship was still intact? Dumbledore shook his head and muttered to himself,

"Don't be ridiculous. The boy is fine. The plan is fine. Nothing could possibly go wrong."

* * *

"It'll take about two weeks for the transfer of magical guardianship to become complete. However, due to our discrepancy, nobody will truly have to know of Harry Stidolph until you choose the best time to introduce him to the world," the man explained happily as Richmond grudgingly handed over the two hundred galleon payment. "Thank you, sir," Penny said, exhausted from the multiple rituals all three of them had to undertake, including the one to get rid of Harry's scar. The man nodded in acknowledgement to the Alpha Female before he continued, "In the meantime, I advise not to leave this tent until the two week deadline. I also advise not to allow anyone into the tent until the magic has settled down. You have your business taken care of beforehand, I presume?" Both the Alphas nodded yes and the man smiled a crooked smile. "Enjoy your son!" he shouted before apparating away.

Poor Harry was magically exhausted, but thank goodness he was already asleep. Richmond easily lifted the tiny boy and carried him to his new room, one that seemed bare, but was guaranteed to hold a lifetime of memories. Drained of all energy, Richmond and Penny didn't even talk as they crashed onto their master bed and fell fast asleep.

**A/N:**

** Finally, that dreadful chapter is done! Pop the champagne! This chapter was a nightmare to deal with! Fortunately, this chapter has others to follow that I already wrote beforehand so more updates can be expected in the near future! Special shoutout to whats up with jeremiah for helping me out with this chapter. If it weren't for your ideas, I wouldn't have finished this chapter for the next thousand years! Once again, please R&R, and the Harry Potter world doesn't belong to me, but to the glorious J.K. Rowling. Cheers!**


	5. Chapter 4

"Come on, little pups, under the tent you go!" cheered Guadalupe as all six pups hurriedly ran by their teacher and took their normal seats. Poor Adam, who is last to come as usual, tripped over a branch and fell to the ground before getting back up and continuing to run inside. Guadalupe smiled at Adam as he ran by, then was about to duck under the cover herself when she heard a voice call her name. Looking over to see the source of the voice, Guadalupe smiled and peeked into the tent before ordering, "Pups, your Alpha Female is coming. Please treat her with your utmost respect." A chorus of "Yes, Guadalupe"s echoed from the tent as the Beta Female walked over to the Alpha and the little boy beside her. Guadalupe almost didn't recognize the boy before she realized that it was Harry: no glasses, no bruises, and his signature scar is completely gone. Taking her mind off of the memory of the beaten boy from two weeks ago, Guadalupe looked down on the young Stidolph and asked in a sweet voice,

"Ah, is little Harry ready to join our classes?" Penny smiled proudly and looked down on her newly adopted son warmly.

"Well, Harry?" she asked. Harry looked from his new mum to his new teacher and replied, "I think so." "Good boy," commended Penny, "Why don't you go inside while I talk to Guadalupe for a little bit?" Harry nodded and passed the females into the tent behind them. After watching him go inside, Guadalupe turned to her older friend and commented, "He looks so different from a few weeks ago. I'm guessing the whole process is done then?" Penny nodded and answered, "Yes, finally! Thanks to some friends of ours, Harry's as good as a Stidolph. But the makeover...that was the hard part."

"Yeah, I heard the scar was an arse to get rid of," Guadalupe responded, only to get a frightening look from her higher authority. Realizing her mistake, Guadalupe quickly stated, "Sorry, Alpha. My language slipped. It won't happen again." Penny only chastised her by reprimanding, "Just don't curse in front of the pups. You know that." Guadalupe nodded once in understanding as Penny smiled. Then, Penny warned, "If you could remind Harry and the class of our rankings here in the Tribe and how we live as werewolves as well, that would be wonderful. We taught everything about the magical world to Harry as much as possible during the whole two week process of being cooped in the Alpha tent. I'm sure Harry could remember on his own, but you know how kids are." Guadalupe nodded and Penelope left to go do her Alpha Female duties for the day.

Meanwhile, Harry walked into the tent, wanting to make himself known to the other werewolf pups. Penny warned him that the sooner the pups knew him, the better off he'd be in the future when they were all Gammas, Betas, or Alphas. However, Harry was surprised to find that he hardly even needed to walk into the tent before kids started swarming around him. The first to draw his attention was a boy with rusty red hair whose gray eyes were lit with fascination and a cool caution at the same time. The boy seemed to notice Harry's attention and said,

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't talk to you." The silence from the other kids was almost overwhelming. Harry tried not to let his surprise show on his face as he thought about a good answer and replied with, "Because we both could be wasting our time instead of doing cool things." The boy didn't miss a beat. "And what is your definition of cool?" he asked, his gray eyes now as hard as stone. Feeling as if he was taking a very important test, Harry thought for a while before he came up with an obvious answer: "Duh. Werewolves." The boy smiled, as did some of the other kids, and he put his arm around Harry. "Hey, you're alright. Name's Phoebus Grint." Harry smiled and held out his hand. Phoebus took it happily as Harry responded, "I'm Harry Po-Stidolph."

"Yeah, we know that," came a snarky response from further away in the tent. Phoebus glared at the source of the voice as it approached in the form of a scowling girl about their age. Her bright blue eyes looked icy, but Harry tried not to let that bother him as Phoebus snarled back, "Is there something really important you wanted to say, Mel? Because your presence is about as welcome as a Dementor right now." The chubby girl, now known as Mel, glared at Phoebus before another girl grabbed her arm and they walked back to their seats. Phoebus said to Harry, "Don't worry about Melanie. She's just a sour puss. Let me introduce you to the rest of the gang. The girl who thankfully dragged Melanie off is Irene Adler. She's a Muggle, but she's not as bad as Mel can be." Harry looked over at the two girls and saw that they were staring at Harry, which made him slightly uncomfortable, but he tried not to show it. Then, Phoebus went on to introduce the kids around him: "This girl's Esmerelda Mason. She's like a little sister to the rest of us. And this," Phoebus gestured to an olive-skinned boy who looked friendly enough, "is Adam Maddison. Nice kid, but clumsy as you can get. He's loyal though, which is a plus." Then, Phoebus gestured to the last kid who looked as fat as a hippopotamus. "This is Hippo. His real name's Gabe, but we like to call him Hippo. He doesn't mind though." To prove Phoebus' point, Hippo held out his hand for Harry to shake and asked, "How ya doing?" Harry shook Hippo's hand and responded, "It's nice to meet you all." Just then, Guadalupe entered the tent, signalling for the rest of the kids to sit down.

"Hello, little pups. I'd like for you all to meet our newest werewolf pup, Mr. Harry Stidolph." At this, some of the kids smiled at him while others growled and Phoebus patted him on the back. Guadalupe smiled and continued, "Now we all know that he is really Harry Potter, but we can't let anybody outside of the Tribe know that, okay?" All of the children nodded, knowing how important it was to keep such a secret for the sake of the Tribe. Then, Guadalupe preached, "For the sake of Mr. Stidolph, let's recap what we've learned about our world. Can anybody tell me the signature mark of a werewolf of the Lunae Tristitiam Tribe?" Surprisingly, Harry raised his hand. Since nobody else raised their hands, Guadalupe had no choice but to call on Harry. "Yes, Harry?"

"You can tell by the amber undertones in everybody's eyes when they're human," Harry answered flawlessly, much to everybody's surprise. "Well done, Harry," commended their shocked teacher. But Harry wasn't done yet: "If you're looking for signature marks when everyone's a werewolf, then you'll probably be dead before you could find them all." This earned laughter from most of the pups and Guadalupe cracked a smile. She then responded, "Thank you Harry for that...interesting joke. Now what are the ranks of our Tribe and how do they contribute to our success as a Tribe?" Again, Harry raised his hand, but this time so did other kids. First, Guadalupe called on Phoebus who answered, "The pups are the future members of the Tribe. Their task is to learn all they can so that they can be vital members to the Tribe when they're fully grown." Then, Guadalupe called on Hippo who claimed, "Then the pups grow into adolescents. The teenage wolves are the ones who can start applying what they learn as they reach adulthood." Then, it was Melanie's turn. "The Gammas consist of most of the adult werewolves in the Tribe. Their main priorities are to hunt, cook, and have little werewolf pups of their own." Next, it was Esmerelda who talked, "The Betas are next in line to become the Alphas. They are the teachers, the babysitters, and the healers of the Tribe." Finally, Guadalupe called on Harry who said, "The Alphas are the leaders of the tribe. They lead hunts, discuss politics of the Tribe, and are the ones who decide when we move camp and where to." Guadalupe beamed at all of them. She then said, "Well, I certainly have no slackers in my class! Harry, I think you'll do nicely here." Harry smiled and bowed to the Beta Female from his sitting position at the praise.

After the lesson, the pups were excused to go play before they had to help with chores. Harry was playing tag with the other boys when he accidentally bumped into someone. "Hey, watch where you're going!" cried a deep male voice before he saw that it was just Harry. "Oh, it's just you. Well, um, sorry about that, I guess." Harry looked up at the man, confused, before he recognized him. "Hi Charlie!" the boy said happily.

Charlie didn't say anything, so both boy and man stared at each other awkwardly for a while before Harry said, "Thanks for healing me, by the way." Charlie only grunted at Harry and asked, "Yeah, sure. Just watch it and don't get into anybody's way, okay?" Then he sauntered off. Phoebus walked up to Harry and asked, "What was that about?" Harry shrugged and guessed, "Maybe he's just having a bad day." Phoebus hummed in agreement before whispering in Harry's ear, "By the way, you're it."

**A/N:**

** Yes, I gave Phoebus Rupert Grint's last name, but only because I couldn't think of any better names for him. Anyway, hope you all like the pups! They're going to be more like secondary characters in the story, occasionally helping Harry with homework and such. Some will go to Hogwarts with him, and others will not, but that's okay. Once again, R&R! Cheers!**


	6. Chapter 5

_July 31st, 1991_

In Lunae Tristitiam society, there are certain rites of passage that are upheld dearly by each and every werewolf in the pack. The first, called the _Filii Crescere_, is when young pups turn eleven years old, thus becoming adolescents. This rite of passage is celebrated with much fun and games, like any other eleven year old's birthday would be celebrated. Such is the case for young Harry Stidolph, starting at the crack of early dawn.

The weak streaks of sunlight peeked through the curtains of the Alpha Tent, barely making it into Harry's room, but it was more than enough to wake him up. Excited beyond compare, Harry threw off his bed covers and hastily slipped on his slippers and bathrobe before looking around his bedroom. It wasn't the empty spare room it was three years ago when Harry first began sleeping in his new home. Now the walls were beginning to show signs of life with random moving pictures of him, his mum, his dad, all three of them, and many other important things. Harry's eyes caught a photograph of Phoebus and him at Phoebus' _Filii Crescere_ back in March of this year, and grinned at the prank. The photograph was taken just moments after Harry oh so lovingly smashed a magical easter egg that turned Phoebus' hair from his original rusty red to a bright annoying green. Now thinking on it, Harry could safely assume that Phoebus would have a prank in store for him, just to pay him back for the green hair trick. But Harry wasn't going to let him!

No sooner had Harry entered the living room when about ten or more people jumped out at him and yelled, "Surprise!" Much to Harry's surprise, he was. Presents lined up from the floor to the ceiling in one corner, meaning almost every wolf in the pack got him a present. All around the living room was decorated with shoddy birthday decorations, but Harry didn't care. He couldn't have been happier.

"Where do I begin?" Harry asked as he sat down on the floor with some of his younger friends, including Phoebus.

"How about you start with this one?" Penny asked and she held out a cream colored envelope. Curious, Harry turned the envelope over and smiled in delight at the Hogwarts seal on the other side. He looked back at the front and grinned at the address:

_Mr. Hartmann A. W. Stidolph_

_The First Bedroom to the Left_

_The Forest_

_Potters Bar _

_Great Britain_

_EN6 1AJ_

"About time they sent yours," Phoebus said, "You've been complaining about your lack of a letter all week!"

"Or was it all month?" Hippo joked, earning an annoyed glare from Harry and a high five from Phoebus. "Just you wait Hippo, when I come back from Hogwarts, you'll be begging for mercy!" Harry jokingly threatened. The two were about to wrestle when Melanie groaned, "Come on! We don't have all day!" Adam, who was usually the quiet one, suddenly retorted to the snippy female, "Is that what your mum said the day you were born?"

Naturally, the comment was met with roaring laughter from most of the pups while Guadalupe smacked Adam upside the head and Melanie's face (as did her mum Ashley's) turned bright pink. The adults in the room began chastising Adam, but Harry and Phoebus were praising their future classmate as if Adam had won the Quidditch World Cup. When the noise finally died down and Adam (reluctantly) apologized to Melanie and her mother, Harry opened the letter and began reading aloud:

* * *

_**"Dear Mr. Stidolph,**_

_** We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. **_

_** Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.**_

_** Yours sincerely,**_

_** Minerva McGonagall**_

_** Deputy Headmistress"**_

* * *

The rest of Harry's presents were opened in a blur. From Phoebus, Harry received a magical action figure of a werewolf. It looked nothing like them, of course; while the Lunae Tristitiam werewolves were covered head to toe in protective warm fur, this figure looked more like a naked mole rat. However, it still gave Harry a good laugh, as well as the idea for a target when practicing spells. The oldest of the adolescents, Conrad Masterson, gave Harry a handwritten book of different secret passages in Hogwarts Castle. Harry remembered Conrad talking about his own adventures at Hogwarts as a Gryffindor and made a mental note to ask Conrad about different spells to enchant the journal so that only he could read it. It would be a disaster if this book fell into the wrong hands.

To Harry, though, the presents from his parents are the most important ones. They must have been saving their money for a long time because as soon as he unwrapped them Harry let out a gasp of excitement. They were train tickets from the Potters Bar Station nearby to London! The Big City itself! Counting them, Harry found that he had five tickets.

"We'll be spending the day at Diagon Alley. One is for you, of course," Richmond explained, secretly enjoying the smile on his son's face, "You can choose two friends to accompany you, and two adult chaperones." The choice wasn't easy. Of course, Harry gave the two adult tickets to his parents, seeing as they bought the tickets after all. But the friends...that was the hard part. Of course, Phoebus is going, but who else? Thinking long and hard, Harry finally made his choice and gave the last two tickets to Phoebus and Adam. The latter looked a little surprised.

"Thanks Harry...but why?" he asked. Harry shrugged and explained, "We'll be in classes together this fall. It'd be nice to enjoy ourselves while we can." Adam smiled and nodded in agreement before running back to the adolescents' tent to get ready for the day.

* * *

Diagon Alley was just as impressive as Harry hoped it would be. Multicolored robed shoppers passed his group by as different vendors called out to them to come buy their merchandise. The three boys looked around in wonder and were about to go into _Quality Quidditch Supplies_ when the Stidolph patriarchs stopped them and began dragging the boys to the end of the street. Much to the adolescents' unhappiness, the adults' explanation was perfectly clear: "We need money first."

"But where are we going to get money anyway?" Harry asked, desperately searching for something that would stop the adults' behavior. Richmond only stopped short and gestured ahead to _Gringotts Wizarding Bank_. Reluctantly, the boys stopped resisting and followed the adults inside sullenly.

It was just as tall on the inside as it was on the outside. Harry led the two boys behind the adults and stopped himself from staring at the goblins. They were strange to look at, sure, but Harry was never one to point out the obvious, because obviously it's just rude.

The adult Stidolphs stopped at the backmost desk where an almost elderly goblin sat behind the desk. Harry peeked around his parents and got a glimpse of the name plaque on the desk, but seeing as it was written in Gobbledegook, the poor boy couldn't even begin to understand it.

"And what sort of business can we do for you today, Mr. and Mrs. Stidolph?" asked the elderly goblin with a sneering twinkle in his beady eyes. "We wish to draw money for our son Hartmann," Penny coolly replied as she took her son's shoulder and brought him forward for the clerk to see. Said clerk (at least, that's what Harry thinks his job is) gazed down upon Harry before giving Harry something between a smile and a snarl. "I see," the clerk replied, "Perhaps we ought to continue this business in my office." The goblin clerk stepped down from his tall desk and started waddling away with a confused group of five werewolves behind him.

When all six of them stepped into the goblin's office, Harry didn't feel as cramped as he originally thought. Like the rest of the building, the office itself was tall, but a little smaller. After all six were inside, the goblin closed the door and began casting protective wards on it and the room. Penny went to protest but Richmond stopped her. It's best to let goblins alone at this sort of thing.

After casting the wards enough to his satisfaction, the goblin clerk then conjured five chairs opposite of his office desk, sat in his chair and went straight down to business: "I know the boy is really Harry Potter." Before the group could make any sort of alarm, the goblin continued, "Now that we have that out of the way, let's talk about our little dilemma here. As you well know, Mr. and Mrs. Stidolph, the both of you don't have much money. Being werewolves, you can hardly make so much as, say, a little over 1500 galleons per year. Surely not enough to support your little wolf pack let alone your adopted son." The goblin then smiled fiercely, as if he knew a great secret, "I won't ask how you managed that under the Ministry's nose, but fear not, we goblins are known for keeping secrets."

"Excuse me," Harry suddenly piped up from his chair beside Richmond and Phoebus. The other five looked at the boy in confusion as Harry began remembering the manners his parents taught him and said, "I didn't mean to intrude upon your brilliance, sir. I just wanted to ask something, if I may be so bold?" If the goblin was impressed by Harry's statement, he didn't show it. However, there was a subtle change in the goblin's stature as the goblin leaned back in his chair and responded, "Well, then, boy don't just sit there. Ask." It truly was curious to the goblin. No witch or wizard has ever talked to him like that before. Typically, as a goblin, he's used to being talked down to, figuratively and literally. Perhaps this boy was different?

"My parents have told me about the Potter Vault and how immensely rich the family was. Merlin knows how much we need the money as you pointed out our low lifestyle. Is it possible for the money to be transferred from the Potter Vault to the Stidolph Vault?" The goblin smiled somewhat evilly, as if he just found his next opponent in a game of chess. "I'm afraid not Mr. Stidolph, because unfortunately, the vault is not yours."

"But I was born Harry Potter!" Harry protested but the goblin explained, "You may have been a Potter by blood, but since you are only eleven, you can not be held accountable for an entire bank account yet." The goblin took a breath as if to calm himself before he collectedly continued, "All wizarding orphans with vaults have theirs temporarily held by their magical guardian until they are of age, which in this world, is seventeen."

"And who is Harry Potter's magical guardian?" Richmond asked, who had been wondering this since Harry was taken under the Stidolph's wing three years ago. "Albus Dumbledore," replied the goblin with what looked like a sneer. For a moment, Richmond held a look of confusion before he traded it for a cool one and relaxed in his chair before asking, "And who is Harry Stidolph's magical guardian?"

"Yourself, of course. Surely you know that," the goblin remarked condescendingly.

"I do, I was just making sure."

Phoebus and Adam, in their seats, were watching the conversation as if it were a show. For a moment, Harry was convinced that they weren't even breathing in fear for interrupting the performance before them. But Harry put that out of his mind and asked the goblin, "Is it possible for Mr. Potter to transfer guardianship of the vault?" The clerk smirked in Harry's direction, which Harry took as the pawn being promoted to the queen. "It is, however, there must be an agreement from both sides of the transfer before it can be done." Harry almost let out a loud groan of annoyance but held it in for the sake of the game. Fortunately, Richmond stepped in at that time and asked,

"What about making a separate bank account that will allow us to draw from the Vault itself?" The goblin looked to Richmond and responded, "Of course it is. But why make one when there might already be one?" "You mean a trust vault?" Penny asked, deciding now would be the best time to make her move. The goblin didn't suggest she was right and only said, "If there was, surely that Vault would be under Dumbledore's control too." The goblin then turned to Harry and spoke harshly, "If I were you, I'd _key_ in on your bank political etiquette before you tackle this _giant_ dilemma."

Before anybody could respond, the goblin escorted the five of them outside of the bank with only a 'Have a Nice Day' and shutting the door with a decisive slam. It took a few minutes for either of them to figure out what just happened, but when they did, they were not happy.

"The nerve of him!" Penny exclaimed.

"How dare he!" Richmond proclaimed before he turned around and started knocking on the door. Harry was about to complain as well when he suddenly saw something all too coincidental.

A giant. Walking down the street. Drunk as a dog walking from the pub. Carrying a set of keys in his hand. _**"Key in...giant dilemma..."**_

Working quickly, Harry pointed the drunk giant out to Phoebus and Adam, and without any words necessary, the trio of boys abandoned their distracted chaperones to go after the large man. Like what Charlie taught them back home at camp, the boys snuck and wove through the large and overbearing crowds as if the numerous witches and wizards were trees; making not a noise, like wolves stalking prey. The boys quickly caught up to the giant and in a matter of moments, the keys were gone and with them, so were the boys as they rushed back to the adults in pure excitement.

The goblin clerk was back at his desk when the three Stidolphs and the two orphans returned. This time Harry was leading the way with Phoebus and Adam. Richmond and Penny were right behind the boys, astonished at the deductive work Harry had done, but all the while doubting if the goblin truly meant to help them like that. Harry shuffled through all the keys before finding the one he thought was correct and held it up in the air like a beacon's light on a stormy night.

The clerk did not react to their reappearance, nor the key, so Harry cleared his throat in order to get the goblin's attention. Sneering, the goblin looked down before he recognized Harry, and more importantly the key, and smiled in great victory, as if he finally won the chess game. "I wish to make a withdrawal from the Potter Trust Vault," Harry claimed with confidence, though he felt less than confident under the goblin's gaze. "Of course, Mr. Stidolph. Follow Griphook, he'll show you the way." Harry smiled in thanks before asking more quietly, "I trust that Professor Dumbledore will not know of this?"

"He rarely checks on the vault itself," the goblin claimed confidentially, "He won't know the difference." All five of them sighed in relief before following the other goblin Griphook down to the Potter Trust Vault.

**A/N:**

** And, with that, part 1 of Diagon Alley is finished! I know, it's a huge time jump but I figured two chapters of Harry and his friends in Diagon Alley will give enough description of the past three years to make up for it. Tune in for part 2 which is due to come out very soon! Cheers!**


	7. Chapter 6

All in all, it was Harry's best birthday yet. Turns out the Trust Vault had massive amounts of money and, due to the many savings it had and the large income that it brought on, it's only going to get bigger. Richmond identified the giant the boys stole from as Rubeus Hagrid, who is the Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts. Hagrid was far from drunk now, as he was now looking for the keys he thought he lost. The poor man was blustering through the streets looking for the stolen keys. So Harry only did the right thing and returned the keys to the blundering oaf while Richmond kept the Trust Vault key on his person. The giant, Hagrid, didn't notice the missing key among thousands, and was more than thrilled.

"Yer a lifesaver, ye are! Oh, I don't know what Dumbledore would do if he found out I dropped me keys in Diagon Alley of all places!" It took Harry a while before he was able to escape but he assured Hagrid that he would be coming in the fall without relaying his name.

Shopping was just as fun as well. With all the money the group drew out, the boys even had enough money to buy some Quidditch souvenirs at the Supply Store they encountered before. After the Quidditch fandom was over, the five went to _Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions_ to get some much needed school robes for the three growing boys. There, Harry and the boys met the pompous Malfoy Heir named Draco who laughed with them at Hagrid as he once more burst his way through the crowd in his oafish manner.

After the fitting was over, Phoebus insisted that he get his wand after Draco showed them his. Harry agreed, though he was more interested in getting a wand then having one like Draco Malfoy's, and so the boys went into the wand shop while Richmond and Penny went to go 'for a spell' though Harry knew there was some sort of ulterior motive.

The wand maker, Ollivander, was a weird sort of man and behaved in a peculiar manner as he helped each boy find his wand one at a time. First, he helped Phoebus, and after trying out five wands, Phoebus was able to find a laurel wand with a unicorn tail hair core at ten inches. Ollivander warned Phoebus not to be lazy with this wand as it will not give its magic if Phoebus is not serious in his magic. Then he moved onto Adam. It took only three tries for Adam before the olive-skinned boy found a match in a willow wand with a unicorn tail hair core at twelve inches.

"I can tell you have great potential, Mr. Maddison, don't be ashamed of it," Ollivander advised warmly before he finally moved on to the birthday boy himself. For some reason, it took Harry many, many tries to find his wand before, in a manner that pertained to curiosity, Ollivander gave Harry a wand with a dark brown handle that Harry gripped onto, but in that moment, there came a magic so strong that Harry almost dropped it.

"Curious...very curious," Ollivander murmured to himself. Harry looked back to his friends before looking to the wandmaker and asked, "Sorry...but, what's curious?" Ollivander observed Harry closely before asking, "You're not who you claim to be, are you Mr. Stidolph?" Before Harry could answer, the wandmaker continued, "Because I remember every wand I've ever sold. It just so happened, many years ago, that when the phoenix that gave its feather for your wand gave another feather. Just one other. It is curious to see you obtain this one, when its brother, gave Harry Potter his hidden scar."

Harry's eyes widened at Ollivander's claim, as did Phoebus and Adam's, before Ollivander promised the three of them that the secret shall remain with him to the grave. Harry's holly wand with phoenix feather core at eleven inches was purchased for seven galleons, and with that, the boys successfully left the wand shop.

* * *

Not much later, the adult Stidolphs caught up with the boys at _Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour_ where they gave Harry a much-needed birthday present. "She's beautiful," Harry commented as he gazed lovingly at the snowy white owl presented to him. "Just don't eat her during the full moon," Phoebus joked, but the owl then glared at Phoebus as if she thought the joke wasn't funny at all. Finally, the five walked to _Flourish and Blotts_ to obtain their necessary books. There, they met up with Draco and his mother and father.

"About time you lot showed up. I was about to leave," Draco jokingly sneered at the trio, to which Harry humorously replied, "That'd do the business some good." All four chuckled a bit before Draco's father Lord Malfoy walked up to them.

"Ah, Draco, nice to see you making friends. Would you mind introducing me to these gentlemen?" Draco smiled and obliged, "Of course, Father. This is Phoebus Grint, Adam Maddison, and Hartmann Stidolph." Harry glared at Draco and threatened, "Call me Hartmann again and I'll–"

"Stidolph?" Lucius asked with a curious expression on his pale face. "You wouldn't happen to know a gentleman by the name of Richmond Stidolph, would you?" Speaking of the devil, Richmond soon came down from the upstairs of the bookshop with Penny in tow. "Lucius," Richmond politely greeted with a somewhat happy tone in his deep voice. Lucius responded in kind, "Richmond. It's been too long." The two men proceeded by giving each other a warm handshake before Lucius politely acknowledged Penny and Richmond to Lucius' wife Narcissa. "How do you know each other?" Harry asked politely, remembering to mind his manners in front of the Malfoys.

"We were roommates back in our school years at Hogwarts. Your father was quite the Slytherin back in the day, young Stidolph," Lucius explained. Richmond coughed nervously before changing the subject, "Draco looks just like you, Lucius. I remember when he was just a baby in swaddling clothes."

"Oh yes, how they grow up so fast!" Narcissa added before kissing her son on the forehead. "Mum!" Draco complained, but one look from his father and Draco immediately clammed up. Penny looked over to Harry lovingly and, predicting what was to come, her son took that as a cue to leave.

"Come on, guys. Let's go find our books."

Draco joined the three of them as they searched for their necessary Transfiguration, Charms, and History of Magic books without any trouble. Despite the shop being packed, it was easy for the small boys to wiggle their ways through the crowd.

"All we need now," Adam observed as he searched through their new treasures, "are our Potions books." All four boys looked around before Draco spotted them up on the highest shelf.

"How are we supposed to get to them when they're all the way up there?" Draco whined. Harry, Phoebus, and Adam only smirked before Phoebus and Adam stood directly in front of the shelf while Harry started climbing.

Over the past three years, Harry trained with his fellow pups in intellectuality, magic (for those who are witches or wizards), and more importantly, fitness. Charlie led their fitness courses and, under his guidance, all of the pups leapt, raced, and climbed through different obstacle courses Charlie would set up in the woods wherever they made camp. Harry proved to be the best due to his small stature, as he could also worm his way through small tunnels, an accomplishment only he and Esmerelda Mason could claim. Charlie also taught them all how to hunt, fish, and survive in the wild for weeks on end with nothing but their own minds.

Now, Charlie's teachings were paying off as Harry almost effortlessly climbed the bookshelf while Phoebus and Adam stood in front to make sure Harry doesn't land on the hard floor if he falls. Harry almost reaches the books when suddenly big paws grabbed his arms and pulled him back down.

"What on Earth do you think you're doing, young man?!" A chubby red-haired woman shouted, which hurt Harry's wolf ears tremendously. Phoebus, who was pushed aside by the woman, tried to grab for Harry but couldn't reach him so he only yelled back, "What do you think you're doing, you crazy lady?! He was climbing to get to the books on the top shelf!" The red-haired woman glared and, still holding Harry, barked back, "Then ask for help! Don't just risk your life for a couple of books!"

"Risk my life?! The worst I could have gotten was a broken neck! Now let me go!" Harry cried in aggravation. The woman's hands were wrapped around the undersides of his arms, and it seemed that the more Harry struggled, the tighter the woman's grip got. Who did this female think she was, anyway?

"Oh no, you don't. I'm taking you straight to the Aurors so they can look after you. It's clear your parents can't even..." But the woman's voice trailed when she saw the man now standing right next to her. Lucius Malfoy glared at the woman as if she was about to steal a precious artefact.

"Mrs. Weasley." Lucius addressed coldly. The woman now known as Mrs. Weasley did her best to glare at the Malfoy patriarch but failed miserably. Suddenly, there was a wand in her face as well as an angry mother.

"Let my son go immediately, you hag," Penny ordered angrily. Richmond kept the wand at Mrs. Weasley's face as the matriarch balked and cried, "Hag?! Do you even know what this boy was doing?! He was climbing the bookshelf like it was a tree! He could have died!"

"What's all this about?" Suddenly, a red-haired man, not nearly as chubby as Mrs. Weasley, came to her side and looked across to see his arch rival. "Lucius." the man coldly greeted. "Arthur Weasley," Richmond greeted just as coldly, still holding his wand out. "Richmond Stidolph?" Mr. Weasley seemed surprised at seeing the man before looking down at what, or who, his wife was holding before suddenly making the connection. Lucius jumped at the opportunity: "Arthur, perhaps you can make your wife see some sense."

"I won't take orders from you, Malfoy," Mr. Weasley snarled before he whispered something in Mrs. Weasley's ear. As if he revealed some great secret, Mrs. Weasley looked to Richmond, then back down at Harry, before letting go of him like he was contaminated. Harry raced back to his parents as Narcissa took this chance and warned, "I'd be careful with how you treat the children of others, Mrs. Weasley. You're not everybody's mother, though you may be that type of woman."

Insulted beyond words, Mrs. Weasley just stormed away with her husband closely following. Draco smirked proudly as he walked to stand beside his mother, now happy for what he has. Phoebus and Adam couldn't say the same, but at least they had Penny and Guadalupe.

Soon, both families purchased the books and were back out on the Alley. Harry might have seen one or two redheads who looked like that terrible woman, but quickly shook off the feeling as he never left his mother and father's sides. Both groups made their goodbyes, and the Malfoys apparated back to their home while the werewolf group went to go catch the train back to Potters Bar. School starts tomorrow, and Harry couldn't be more excited.

**A/N:**

** And part 2 of Diagon Alley is finished! Woohoo! At first both parts were one whole chapter, but then I realized that one whole chapter of this magnitude would be too much, so I obviously just split down the middle and the rest is history. I hope you all enjoy this story so far, and as always, R&R! Cheers!**


	8. Chapter 7

_September 1st, 1991_

_**"Harry...Harry..." called out the voice. Looking around, Harry found he couldn't see anything except dense, dreary fog. "Harry..." the voice called again.**_

_** "Who are you?" Harry asked, trying to put the voice to a face, but finding that he is also all alone. "Harry..." the voice whispered, almost tauntingly. Starting to panic, Harry begins to run for it, but seeing as the fog is now thickening to an enormous degree, it felt as if Harry wasn't getting anywhere. "Harry..." the voice sounded closer now. "Harry..." Harry keeps running but it feels as if the voice is noiselessly pursuing him and is catching up fast. **_

_** "HARRY WAKE UP!"**_

Screaming, Harry jumps out of his bed, kicking and punching everywhere he could see until he starts to calm down and sees Phoebus at his right side with a bloody nose. Harry, realizing the culprit of his nightmare, knew the nose job was from one of his punches, helping him regain some of his ego. "That's what you get for creeping in my dreams," Harry remarked cheekily, although he was confused. "How'd you do that, anyway?" Phoebus smirked and replied, "That's for me to know and you to figure out." Then, Phoebus' tone changed as he eagerly jumped up and down on Harry's bed and cried, "Now come on, sleepy head! We get to go to Hogwarts today!"

* * *

The time 8:30 a.m. found the werewolf pack at Platform 9¾. Harry, Phoebus, and other werewolf wizarding students pushed their trolleys with their luggage while adult chaperones such as Guadalupe, Charlie, and of course the Alphas watched over them and to see them off. The platform was crowded as it normally was on the first day of school; so much in fact that Harry couldn't go a few minutes without someone accidentally bumping into him.

A nice gentleman in a suit politely took the students' luggage and packed it all neatly into one magically elongated car at the front of the train. The older werewolf students Agnes Beltz and Gemma Richards guided Harry, Phoebus, and Adam onto the train and into one of the first empty compartments they found. All five were perfectly comfortable. As the train began to chug away, Harry and the others looked out the window to wave goodbye to the adults and children left behind. Penny smiled with proud tears in her eyes and Harry remembered her and Richmond's ominous warning:

_"Professor Dumbledore is not all he seems, Harry. Don't let him fool you. He's manipulative and evil. In fact, we believe he's responsible for putting you with the Dursleys in the first place."_ All of a sudden, Harry felt chilly and not because of the spell to cool down the compartment.

Soon, Harry put his parents' warning at the back of his mind and joined in with his friends and their merriment. A nice old lady with a treats trolley stopped by the compartment and, seeing as he still had money left over from Diagon Alley, Harry brought treats for everybody, depending on what they asked for. For Gemma, Harry bought a Licorice Wand. For Agnes the Hufflepuff, Harry bought a Chocolate Cauldron. For Adam, he bought a Chocolate Frog (Adam groaned at getting the Albus Dumbledore card), and for Phoebus and himself, he bought bags of Bertie Botts' Every Flavored Beans.

In the midst of their candied feast, the compartment door opened to reveal a boy about Harry's age with an annoying mess of freckles and Mrs. Weasley's fiery red hair. He seemed to be looking for something. The three first years immediately didn't take a liking to the boy, but the older kids were nice enough, asking him how he was, what year he was in, and what he was looking for.

"My name's Ron Weasley, and I'm looking for Harry Potter," the boy answered smugly. "Have you seen him?" All six kids instinctively stiffened at the name, but kept calm so as not to alarm their visitor.

"No, we haven't seen him. Why are you looking?" Gemma asked politely, although she was rather suspicious of the boy. Ron puffed up at the attention the seventh year was giving him and claimed, "I'm going to be Harry Potter's best mate. He and I are going to have all sorts of adventures and we'll be the heroes of the school, heck even the whole magical world! But I need to find him first in order to start our friendship, so that's why I'm asking you." The five werewolves look at one another with the same confused expression on their faces before Adam timidly asked,

"How do you know that?" Ron glared at Adam with his muddy brown eyes and retorted, "That's for me to know and for you to bug off. Nobody asked you anyway." At this, Agnes silently gasped in shock and Phoebus asked, "Hey Weasley, why don't you do us a favor and shove off?" The boy in question looked to the smarter redhead with a confused expression and asked, "Why?" At this, Harry simply said,

"Because, Weasley, it's clear that over the past few minutes we've met you, you've proved to be rude and dumb as a red brick. In fact, I'm pretty sure you lower the I.Q. of this whole compartment. Not to mention that you offended a good friend of ours, so I suggest you take my friend Phoebus' advice and leave." Weasley now glared at Harry, who coolly gazed at him back with a mean threat underneath his green and amber eyes.

Finally, Weasley ended the glaring contest by taking his 'Harry Potter Search' elsewhere and stomping off down the hall, leaving the door open. The group didn't even get a chance to breathe before a hand took the ajar door and opened it wide revealing a bushy, brown haired girl and a sniffling dark haired boy behind her.

"Excuse me, have either of you seen a toad anywhere?" the girl asked politely with a hint of bossiness. She gestured to the boy and explained, "Neville here's lost one." All five of them shook their heads and the boy Neville only sniffled again and wailed, "Trevor was a present from Gran! She's going to kill me when she finds out I've lost him already!" Adam did his best to cheer up his fellow first year by stating: "I'm sure he'll turn up somewhere." Agnes nodded encouragingly while Gemma, Phoebus, and Harry smiled a little awkwardly, wondering why it's such a big deal. Neville only smiled at the comfort and moved on, leaving the girl to her devices. She looked back to Phoebus and blushed a little before going off after the boy. Phoebus was rather confused at that, while Gemma giggled and told him, "You seem to have an admirer, Phoebus."

At this, Phoebus puffed out a bit and claimed his charms were working already. "Yeah, they're definitely working on beavers," Harry cheekily remarked, remembering the girl's buck teeth. This earned Harry a smack across the head and a general laughter from the rest of the room.

"You know I despise laughter," drawled a familiar voice from the entry to the room. The five looked to see Draco Malfoy already in his Hogwarts uniform, with two brawly boys behind him. Harry observed the boys. Both were rather large, in fact, larger than Dudley from what he could remember of his spoiled, selfish, and mean cousin. Draco noticed where Harry's eyes were and introduced his two friends: "This here is Crabbe, and this is Goyle. We've been friends since we were little." Harry and the others politely smiled at the boys and the boys grunted in return.

Phoebus commented, "If you despise laughter, then it's no wonder you don't have many friends." Draco glared at Phoebus before retorting back, "At least I don't have fire for hair."

"Watch it Snowy!" Phoebus snapped back before Harry called the truce: "Hey come on, guys. First day of school and you're already fighting? Why don't we attempt to be gentlemen?" Both boys shrugged and Draco helped himself to a seat next to Gemma while Crabbe and Goyle stood guard at the door. Thanks to the bodyguards, neither the Malfoy heir nor the five werewolves were interrupted again for the rest of the ride.

* * *

Gemma and Agnes were fortunate enough to take horseless carriages up to the castle. Harry and the rest of the first years were unfortunate enough to have to take magical boats across the Black Lake in order to reach the place. Even more unfortunate for Harry, he was forced to sit in the same boat as Ron Weasley, who shot so many insults at him that Harry threatened to push him into the lake and leave him in the water. However, the view of the castle from the water below was a definite perk. Harry, as well as the other students, could literally feel the magic emanating off of the stone walls and tall towers.

The first years eagerly stepped off the boats and lined up obediently on the steps of the castle, all the while shaking in their shoes from excitement and nervousness. Soon, the students were met by an old lady with an emerald green pointy hat and emerald green robes. She caught sight of Harry and stopped for a moment before shaking off something that seemed like a bad memory. Then she began her speech:

"Welcome to Hogwarts. I am Professor Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, Head of the Gryffindor House, and your Transfiguration Professor for whichever house you are sorted to." There was a murmur of confusion among the less educated young ones before she continued, "Tonight all of you will be sorted into one of four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. As your seven year educational career at Hogwarts progresses, your house will be something like your family. Like every family, they have their rules. Follow these rules and you will earn points. Any rule breaking and you will lose points. The house with the most points by the end of the year will win the House Cup and will hold it until the victor for the next year claims it." Harry nodded in understanding while others still looked sort of confused. No doubt they'll know by the end of this year, hopefully. "If you will all follow me now into the Great Hall," Professor McGonagall announced before she turned and walked up the stairs and through a giant set of doors, the new students eagerly following her like a mother cat with her kittens.

The Great Hall is like nothing Harry had ever seen before. It must be twice as tall as the interior of Gringotts! The ceiling was enchanted to look like the night sky, while magical floating candles lit the warm room. Harry knew it was enchanted because of the buck tooth girl from before relaying fact over fact that she read from Hogwarts: A History. She was definitely annoying to say the least.

Finally, the group reached the front of the hall, facing a long table of people much older than the students, and at the Head chair, was of course Headmaster Dumbledore. He looked too old for this job in Harry's eyes. After all, his beard must reach the floor! Professor McGonagall now stands next to a stool with a tattered pointy hat on top. She also held a long list in her hand. She picked up the hat with her other hand and told the first years, "When I call your name, you will come up and sit on the stool where the Sorting Hat shall place you in your house." Then, she began with: "Abbott, Hannah!"

It seemed to take forever after that. The bushy haired girl from before, now known as Hermione Granger, was surprisingly sorted into Gryffindor, the house of the brave. When 'Grint, Phoebus' was called, said boy strode up to the stool confidently and only had to wait a few moments before the Hat cried out "SLYTHERIN!" earning him a spot among the sneaky and ambitious. Then, to everyone's surprise, the name 'Grint, Selene' was called next, and a girl _who looked exactly like Phoebus_ walked up to the stool. She ended up in Ravenclaw, and she proved her Ravenclaw curiosity by constantly looking back at the Slytherin table to get a glance at her male look-alike.

As Harry and Adam waited for their names to be called, Harry heard the name 'Leclair, Marielle' and felt someone push past him. The girl looked back and Harry saw the most pure silver eyes a person could ever have. Her short dark red hair added to her beauty, and for once in his life, Harry found himself gaping. The girl Christabelle stepped up to the stool with a smile on her pretty pale porcelain face and sat on the stool. To Harry she looked so good and so perfect that, naturally, he wasn't surprised that she ended up in Gryffindor. As she sped away to the Gryffindor table and sat next to Hermione Granger, Harry forced himself to stop thinking about her as Adam's name is called.

He was rather timid at first but soon picked up the pace as if deciding to just get this over with. On the train ride to Hogwarts, Harry decided that due to his clumsiness and timid nature that his clanmate would end up in Hufflepuff. Harry proved to be right, and he smiled at Adam as he made his way over to the table of the loyal.

Suddenly, from out of nowhere, the name 'Potter, Harry' was called.

Surprised and worried, Harry looked around to see if anyone was looking at him, but everyone else was preoccupied with trying to find Harry Potter. When nobody stepped up, Professor McGonagall called the name again. Then she called it for the third time. Harry snuck a glimpse at Headmaster Dumbledore and silently cheered when he saw that Dumbledore looked just as confused as everybody else in the hall. Finally, the elderly professor was forced to acknowledge that the Potter boy was not here and moved on with the Sorting. The Headmaster stayed quiet, although Harry knew that there would be nothing less than a man hunt for his golden boy.

Almost at the bottom of the list now, Professor McGonagall called out 'Stidolph, Hartmann'. Taking a few small breaths, Harry pushed his way through the crowd and walked up to the stool and to the hat that would define his life. As soon as the hat was placed on his head, Harry thought about wanting the truth, needing the truth, needing to act on the truth and a voice echoed in his mind:

**Needing the truth, eh? Perhaps Ravenclaw would be best for you?** Harry shook his head 'no'. He wasn't desperate like other Ravenclaws would be. **That does appear to be the case. Hmm...where to put you? Bravery, a selfless soul? Nay, you're smarter than that. Loyalty? No, not enough of it. Ah, do I see ambition? A need to prove yourself? ** Knowing where this was going, Harry thought about all of his ambitions and what he wanted to do with his life. This seemed to please the voice of the Sorting Hat as it now exclaimed happily, **A wise choice. It's never too early to start planning, and besides, you could always make your real friends. I know exactly where you'll go, Mr. Stidolph.** With a triumphant tone, the Sorting Hat cried out the house Harry wanted all along:

"SLYTHERIN!"

**A/N:**

** Yay, Harry's in Slytherin! I feel as if I went through this whole thing rather fast but I'm just so excited with how this story is coming along, I can't even handle it right now. Actually, I can, but you get my point. Coming up, Harry's lessons at Hogwarts! Cheers!**


	9. Chapter 8

_September 2nd, 1991_

The rest of the night before was a blur to Harry. All he could truly recall was his most triumphant moment of his life thus far: the sorting into Slytherin. So far, the house has really lived up to the rumors Harry heard and the expectations he set because of them. What one might consider as dark and dreary like the common room, Harry sees as exciting and mysterious, wondering if a jackal or a giant snake will come out of the walls any minute now. The dorms were no different: full of shadows and suspense. It gave Harry chills just to think about it.

Now it is the first day of classes, and Harry eagerly walked to the Slytherin table with a tired Phoebus, a weary Draco, and a fatigued Crabbe not far behind.

"Honestly, Harry, how can you be so awake? It's seven in the morning!" Draco whined, sitting next to Harry with Crabbe on his other. Phoebus, who wasn't as tired, sat on Harry's other side and replied, "Simple. Our teacher back home made us get up at five-and-thirty every morning just to get ready for the day."

"Five-and-thirty?!" Draco asked, astounded. "Yeah," Harry confirmed. "What about you?" Draco looked rather meek for a Slytherin as he said, "Nine in the morning." Phoebus shrugged. "Better than sleepy head over there. I think he's used to waking up at noon." The four boys turned to see Ron Weasley stumble to the Gryffindor table at the other side of the Great Hall. His fiery red hair was in a tangled mess, and he continually rubbed his eyes as if he was having an allergic reaction. The four Slytherins chuckled silently as Goyle and the other Slytherins in their year joined them at the table.

Breakfast lasted for an hour, and during that hour, the Heads of Houses did their yearly tradition of handing out the students' schedules personally. Professor Severus Snape, the Head of the Slytherin House, looked just like the man Gemma the seventh year Slytherin described. Tall, pale, greasy black hair, and beady black eyes that gained a habit of glaring and nothing else. Not to mention the man never smiled, not even to the best Potions student. When Snape got to the first years, he didn't even bother to acknowledge them, instead just rudely giving them the timetables and moved on.

However, when he reached Harry, Snape stopped for a moment, just as McGonagall did the night before. Harry was by now very confused. Did he look like somebody they knew? Then, an even worse thought came to him, _do they recognize him as Harry Potter_? If he did, Snape didn't say anything. He only caught himself from his moment of shock, gave Harry his timetable, and pressed on. Harry looked and groaned. Most of his classes were with the Gryffindors.

Before he could go back to his dorm and grab his needed supplies, he noticed a head of rusty red hair cautiously walk towards the group. Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance at the appearance of Selene, and then became very annoyed when he saw that Phoebus was just as curious about his look-alike. Just as Phoebus was about to stand and greet her, Harry holds his best friend down and quietly reprimands,

"Have you gone off your rocker? We can't let anybody know about who we are, you know that!" Phoebus, about to protest, was cut short when Harry drags him off, leaving a confused Selene behind. Phoebus, of course, fought against his best friend, but Harry's grip was as hard as iron, and the two looked rather silly going down the hall to the dungeons, but Harry didn't care.

Suddenly, from out of nowhere, Harry felt something from under his foot. As he let go of Phoebus' robes and began to fall, Harry's werewolf instincts began to take over. Quickly, he rolled his head in and tucked his whole body in a tight ball before his back reached the ground and he somersaulted back into a standing position at ease. Some of the older students casually applauded Harry for his little parlour trick while Ron Weasley, who tripped Harry in the first place, scowled at seeing his humiliation plan fail. Harry glared at Ron, and so did Phoebus, before Ron is joined by Granger and the beautiful girl from the night before. The girl, Leclair or something, glared at Harry, but he only casually smirked back and walked away, Phoebus and the other Slytherins in tow.

* * *

The first class was Potions with the Gryffindors. On the plus side, Snape knew from experience that the Slytherins tended to be more adept at Potions then their reckless counterparts and therefore treated them a little nicer. On the negative side, Ron Weasley kept throwing insults at Harry until finally Snape steps in and takes ten points away because Weasley was being annoying. This made Weasley even more upset, but he kept silent for the rest of the class.

This proved to be a good thing considering they had their first pop quiz today with a somewhat tricky Cure for Boils. Harry and his partner Phoebus managed to do okay, and earned good marks for their first try. The Gryffindors, on the other hand, weren't so lucky. Seamus Finnigan set his potion on fire within the first five minutes of the time allotted, earning him an immediate F. Granger, on the other hand, who was the only one to prove competent in the class, earning an O (much to the Slytherins' annoyance). After the potions were graded, the bell had rung signalling the end of class. Harry, curious of Professor Snape's strange behavior earlier, let the others go ahead and meet with the mysterious Head of House himself. The greasy-haired professor was at his desk grading papers when Harry approached, for some reason feeling a little nervous. Professor Snape's head shot up at the approach of the first year then looked back down at his work.

"Professor?" Harry asked, doing his best not to sound nervous. Professor Snape ignored him, as he had better things to attend to. Nevertheless, Harry kept trying, "Sir, I wanted to ask you about this morning." This caught the Potions Professor's attention as he froze in his work before continuing, also signalling Harry to continue. Harry obliged: "This morning when you were handing out the timetables, you reached me and seemed startled, like you knew me from somewhere." This caused the professor to pause. "Did I do something wrong, sir?"

The professor said nothing yet; he only raised his head and looked at Harry with a pondering look on his face, as if wondering whether to tell Harry something or not. Finally, Professor Snape responded in his usual monotone,

"Forgive me, Mr. Stidolph. I was under the impression of being 'shocked' because you do look like someone I knew from a long time ago." Harry nodded in acceptance of the apology and replied, "I understand, I just wanted to ask if I did anything wrong."

"No, nothing wrong. Yet."

Harry smirked, his emerald green eyes sparkling at the remark before bowing in acknowledgement and leaving the classroom to go to his next class.

* * *

Next was Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws, and Selene. Both Harry and Phoebus were quite annoyed with Selene's persistance in getting Phoebus' attention. Professor McGonagall, on the other hand, needed no persistance as she led the class with an iron hand and cool leadership, something that made Harry begin to admire her. Strange how a teacher like McGonagall could be the Head of House for a bunch of dunderheads like Ron Weasley but perhaps she could whip them into shape over the next seven years. Harry mentally shrugged to himself. Not like he really cared.

Their first lesson consisted of notes aplenty before the class was allowed to take out their wands and begin to learn how to turn a matchstick into a needle. McGonagall stated that eventually the class will get to learning the other way around, but for now, baby steps. With his matchstick in front of him, Harry followed the instructions McGonagall wrote on the board:

Imagine the matchstick in your head.

Imagine the matchstick turning into a needle in your head.

Say the correct spell with great punctuation and precise wand movement with your imaginative transfiguration in your head.

"Well, I must say, you've got quite the imagination, Mr. Stidolph," commended Professor McGonagall when she went to the Slytherin's side. Harry looked down to find that, indeed, the object in front of him looked more like a needle than a matchstick. Also included were little gems just beginning to form around the eye and along the needle itself. The other classmates were astounded when McGonagall showed them Harry's craftsmanship, and begged him to tell them how he did it. Harry only shrugged and replied, "A good wizard never reveals his secrets." After McGonagall assigned the first year Slytherins and Ravenclaws their 'boatloads' of homework, the bell rang for the second time, signalling the end of the second period.

* * *

The day seemed to fly by pretty fast after that. After lunch, Harry was able to get his revenge on Weasley by tripping him on the way to Charms. Weasley wasn't nearly as flexible as Harry was and, therefore, he fell flat onto the stone floor. Both Granger and the beautiful Marielle Leclair went to help him while Harry high-fived his Slytherin friends and they continued on their merry way. As the Gryffindors were catching up with the Slytherins, Phoebus held the door open for the girls before slamming it shut on Weasley, making him collide with the wooden door hard.

"An extra measure so that he'll think twice before pulling another one of his 'pranks'," Phoebus explained to Harry quietly while Granger and Leclair helped Weasley to his seat.

Professor Flitwick, the Charms Professor, is actually a goblin, or at least part-goblin, and had to stand on an extremely large pedestal in order for everyone in the classroom to see him properly. He also spoke with an unusually high pitched voice, which he joked came from a Charms accident years ago and is irreversible. After that, the students took notes and then began practicing their first charm. Harry looked across to see Weasley glaring at him, but Harry only smirked and waved back politely, making Weasley's face all the more red.

Unsurprisingly, Granger was the first one to actually be able to perform the spell and Flitwick looked so happy at her accomplishment that he looked like he was going to do a backflip. Instead, however, he gave Gryffindor ten points. Flitwick then went to help Seamus Finnigan douse his newly aroused flames, giving Harry the chance he's been waiting for. Quickly, he leaned forward to get Granger's attention, and when he did, he only said quietly, "Nice job, buckteeth." Granger turned red and glared at Harry but said nothing. Neither did Leclair, although Harry is pretty sure she glared at him too.

After Charms homework was assigned and class finished, the last class of the day was Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Quirrell and the Ravenclaws.

"Psst...Psst..." Selene whispered in Phoebus' direction as she sat two desks away. "Don't. Don't acknowledge her, Phoebus," Harry whispered, worried that his friend might bend and break. Phoebus held strong though, and therefore ignored her. Selene finally stopped but Harry could tell from the look in her gray eyes that she wasn't entirely giving up yet. Soon, Professor Quirrell came in and began the lesson.

"G-G-Good day, class. I am P-P-Professor Quirrell, your Defense against the D-Dark Arts teacher. Today, we will be t-t-talking about..." Quirrell continued his stammering speech, talking about the year and so forth. Harry found it hard to concentrate, as suddenly he had developed the most unusual headache. Soon, the headache started to grow and grow. What was Quirrell talking about? Something about vampires? In Morocco? Don't they live in Transylvania? Merlin, is he confused!

The class seemed to go on forever, but when it finally ended, Harry and his friends left the classroom, with Harry almost bolting out of the room. As soon as he stepped out Harry felt his headache almost immediately go away.

"Hey, Harry, you okay?" asked Phoebus, his gray eyes showing a tint of worry. "Yeah, I just had this really bad headache during class, but once I come out, it stops. Strange, huh?" Harry asks. Draco butts in and shares, "Maybe it's all the garlic he keeps. A vampire from Morocco is hunting for him, you know." All of them shrugged and kept going, eager for dinner.

**A/N: I realize that J.K. Rowling never had a chapter with Harry in Quirrell's class except for finals or something like that, so here's Harry's first classes, including DADA! Hope you all enjoyed and more chapters to come! Cheers!**


	10. Chapter 9

_October 31st, 1991_

**Hello lovelies! Before I get started I've had a few inquiring reviews about certain aspects of the story, therefore I shall explain to you what's been happening:**

**To the Guest who said: 'Amazing story, I liked' thank you very much!**

**To adenoide who asked: 'How Harry could have a headache because his scar gone.' Well, that's the question isn't it? How could I possibly explain it now when it's so early on in this series?**

**And, last but not least, to Cherrie-San who said: 'I would think that Severus would be a little more twitchy with all the were-students attending, after all he does have somewhat of a fear (justifiable) of Werewolves and he would probably be the one to supply the wolfsbane.' Well...you're right and you're wrong. You forget how good of an actor Snape can be, and besides Snape's too Slytherin to just say his feelings outright. Besides, it's not like everyone really knows of Harry and the gang's identities. There isn't even a gang. After Gemma and Agnes graduate there'll only be three werewolves (Harry, Phoebus, and Adam). But, to be fair, I didn't mention Richmond Stidolph's job very well. Remember the plants that gave Harry a nosebleed a couple of chapters ago? Well, Richmond's a herbologist because it's easier to obtain wolfsbane that way and wolfsbane was among the plants in Richmond's office. He also sends the werewolves at Hogwarts wolfsbane because it's cheaper that way than to bring Snape into it all. **

**I hope that explains everything. Now, on to Halloween!**

* * *

As usual, Harry woke up bright and early at exactly five-and-thirty to get ready for the day. He had to admit, he felt a little awkward waking up so comfortably on the anniversary of his parents' death, their tenth to be exact. He does feel a little sad about it all, but Richmond and Penny have been good parents, so Harry decides to not dwell on the past anymore.

After showering and getting ready for the day, Harry steps out of the bathroom to find that all three of his roommates Phoebus, Draco, and Vincent still out like lights. Harry looked at the clock and realized that it was only six-and-thirty now, thus Harry decided to put his devious little mind to work.

The first prank he thought of he knew was for Draco. Draco hates being woken up by someone else (seems to have developed from a house elf that couldn't tell the time back home) so Harry takes his own alarm clock, ready to set, and puts it right next to the little Malfoy's head.

Next was Vincent. This was an easy one. Seeing as Vincent loves food, Harry decided to take his hidden whipped cream and poured it all over both of Vincent's hands. At least this prank would make him happy, Harry assumed.

Last but certainly not least was Phoebus. Remembering the mind prank from the beginning of the year, Harry made sure to pay extra detail in this prank. Knowing that some of Vincent's whipped cream would end up on Phoebus, Harry enchanted certain parts of Phoebus' skin to light up in different colors like a Muggle machine at a casino everytime whipped cream hits it. Pulling out his camera, Harry sat back, pressed on the alarm clock, and let the madness unfold.

As he predicted, Draco woke up screaming which in turn woke up Vincent. Flailing around his hands, Vincent made whipped cream go everywhere, especially on Phoebus in the bed next to him. The cream, hitting certain parts of Phoebus' skin, made him light up in different colors of reds, greens, and blues. The best part of it was that Harry caught every single bit of it on his camera. Laughing like a hyena, Harry put away his camera after shooting ten good shots and looked back to his roommates and proceeded to roll around on the floor laughing. Needless to say his roommates weren't very happy, especially Phoebus.

"That's a cruel trick you pulled, Harry," Phoebus growled, as he muttered the incantations to turn his skin back to normal. Vincent nodded in agreement while Draco threw the alarm clock at Harry. The clock hit his head, but Harry didn't complain. Instead he got back up and happily retorted,

"Well you're one to talk, Phoebus. After all, didn't you pull a stunt on me at the beginning of this year?" Phoebus turned about as red as his hair as Harry turned to the other two and explained, "As for you two, I figured my pranks would be a decent way to celebrate Halloween and to extend our friendship. Nice of me, huh?"

"Oh don't worry, Stidolph," Draco warned, "We'll be sure to extend that friendship to you one day in the near future." Harry only snickered and replied, "I'd like to see you try, Malfoy. By the way, Happy Halloween."

* * *

"Today, you will be attempting to brew the Forgetfulness Potion," Snape drawled as usual, "But only those who turned in their assigned essays on said potion will be doing this activity. The rest of you who didn't turn in your essays or turned in incomplete ones," at this he glared at Ron Weasley, who as usual wasn't even close to paying attention, "will be completing what you wrote and turning them in for a late grade." Before the students could get started, Snape added one more detail: "Since it is Halloween, I've decided to switch things up a little today. You will be working on this potion with someone who is not in the same house as you. Now, be on with it!"

Five minutes later, Harry found himself working with Leclair. Draco, however, wasn't so lucky as he is forced to work with Granger in the table in front of him. Poor, poor Phoebus had to work with unlucky Seamus Finnigan in the back. It was only a matter of time before there was an explosion of magic. Harry hit Draco on the back a little bit to get his attention, and when he did, he quietly challenged, "Five galleons that Finnigan will explode in ten minutes."

"You're on," dared a snickering Draco.

"Why don't you both leave him alone? He's just having a hard time, that's all," snapped Leclair from her seat next to Harry. Harry smirked at her but did as he was told. Draco just ignored the Gryffindor and kept working. Or, tried to, anyway.

"Those aren't exactly two drops of Lethe water. The heat isn't precisely 120 degrees. Those Valerian sprigs aren't entirely the right color. You really should..."

"Fine, Granger, if you're so good at it, why don't you do it!" Draco nearly shouted in frustration before going to read through his prose fiction. Harry, who could sense that Draco was upset, decided to stand up for his friend.

"Not exactly a team player, are you buckteeth?" Leclair snapped on him again, "Leave her alone! She was just trying to help!" Harry glared at the girl, his werewolf amber streaks shining as he retorted, "Yeah, well she's not very good at it, is she?"

"She's a Mudblood, what do you expect?" Draco asked form his book. Both Leclair and Granger stiffened at the word but Harry ignored them and said, "Well, that's not an excuse for poor behavior." Draco shrugged in acknowledgement but Leclair certainly wasn't backing down. "Oh and you're one to talk, Stidolph. Who was it who tripped poor Ron on the way to Charms _and_ slammed the door in his face on the first day?" Harry glared at his classmate with as much fire in his eyes as he could get and he quietly argued, "Okay, 1: The door slamming was not me, that was Phoebus Grint. 2: He tripped me first."

"Oh, you mean that cute little somersault thing? At least you didn't get any broken bones from it." Harry nearly gawked at this and claimed, "Broken bones?! The worst he could have gotten was a bruise!" Leclair only went back to their work and retaliated,

"Whatever. You're just selfish." Harry glared at her and also kept working. But not before he mumbled, "Goody-goody."

"Wicked."

"Pious."

"Villanous."

"Strait-laced!"

"Vicious!"

"Prudish!"

"CRUEL!"

"SELF-RIGHTEOUS!"

"HORRIBLE!"

"PRIGGISH!"

_**BANG!**_

The verbal fight ended abruptly with that bang as everyone, whose eyes were previously on Harry and Leclair, turned sharply to the back of the room to see Seamus Finnigan with his eyebrows singed off and Phoebus Grint (who was smart enough to cover himself before the explosion) gained holes in his school robes.

"Finnigan!" snapped Snape from his front desk, finally seeing the oppurtunity to speak. "Ten points from Gryffindor for your incompetency! ! Granger! Help Finnigan and to the Hospital Wing immediately." Both obeyed their angry professor as Malfoy walked alongside Grint while Granger attempted to help Seamus but was only pushed aside in return. Snape then walked to Harry and Leclair's table and declared, with a glowering glare, "As for you two, you both will be here in my office serving detention after classes for disturbing the peace. And, that will be fifteen points from each of you."

"Fifteen?!" exclaimed Ron Weasley, who was 'working' on his essay on the other side of the room. Weasley pointed at Harry and loudly accused, "But he started it! Shouldn't he lose more points?"

"That's another five from Gryffindor for talking back to a teacher, Weasley!" Snape snapped back. Then he turned to the rest of the class and ordered, "The rest of you, finish your potions! Now!"

* * *

Harry was so angry from the little incident that he could barely concentrate in any other classes. He explained his situation to Professor McGonagall who was understanding enough, but took away a point every time Harry lost focus in class. It made Harry want to barf. On the plus side, though, Leclair wasn't having a very good day either. After she rejected Weasley's terrible jokes for the thousandth time in Charms, he instead took his frustration out on Granger. Poor girl probably had enough of it and was the first one to leave the classroom, tears in her eyes. Leclair went after her but Harry didn't care as to whether she caught up with her housemate. Let the Gryffindors rot for all he cared at the moment.

After DADA (which gave Harry a blistering headache again), Harry walked down to the dungeons to the already familiar Potions classroom. Surprisingly, Leclair was already there, skinning some sort of dangerous root, as she had her Potions gloves on. She turned to look at the visitor, but when she saw that it was Harry, she snarled at him. Harry responded in kind before Professor Snape entered.

"Mr. Stidolph, if you are done making faces at Miss Leclair I have your assignment for you," Snape said in his usual drawl as he walked to the front of the room where his paperwork lay. The dark professor reached into one of his drawers and pulled out a bag. Thanks to his werewolf senses, Harry could already smell what was inside, and it took all he had not to glower at Snape. "This," Snape introduced haughtily, "is aconite. A very poisonous root. I trust you brought your gloves?" Harry simply reached into his bag and pulled them out to show his teacher. "Good. With your gloves on, you shall take a knife from one of the cauldron sets on one of the tables. You will be cutting the aconite into small pieces and putting those pieces into this extra bag." Carefully, Professor Snape took out another bag and handed both to Harry. Grumbling, Harry put on his gloves and accepted the pouches before going to take a seat. Coincidentally, he happened to choose the seat right next to Leclair, who he could now see was peeling what looked to be green onions of sorts.

"The both of you shall work until the dinner bell rings." Both first years looked to the clock and saw that it was only three o'clock. Leclair looked like she was going to protest, but thought better of it and just kept working. However, Harry asked, "But, sir, what if we run out of ingredients?" Snape looked at Harry with a poker face that meant he wanted to give Harry more detention time or answer the question. Instead, it seemed he went with the latter and replied, "Then come see me in my office and I will give you another assignment. That's not too hard for you, is it Mr. Stidolph?" Harry shook his head and replied simply, "No, sir, I just wanted to clarify." With that, Professor Snape retreated into his joined office behind his desk and shutting the door.

The time seemed to go forever after that. Fortunately, besides cutting the stupid herb, Harry found a way to pass the time by simply praying to whatever Deity up there to not let his nose run wild with blood as it normally does whenever he's around aconite or wolfsbane. Leclair, on the other hand, often found herself daydreaming. Whenever she did, Harry couldn't help but constantly look to her. Despite her terrible temper, she is still beautiful, for a Gryffindor that is. Whenever Leclair brought herself back to reality, Harry did as well, and thus the pattern continued.

About an hour later, Leclair did something that shocked Harry. She put down her peeler and the plant she was peeling, turned in Harry's direction, and said, "I'm sorry about earlier." Shocked, Harry almost cut his finger before he quickly put down his stuff. Green eyes met silver ones and Harry was almost sure that she caught her breath at the same time he did. "What?" Harry asked, not exactly sure whether he was dreaming or not. A Gryffindor apologizing to a Slytherin? That just doesn't happen. Unfortunately, Leclair just simply withdrew and replied, "I'm not going to say it again. You know what I said." Harry thought about this for a moment, smirked, and then said to the Gryffindor,

"You're afraid of me, aren't you?" Leclair stopped for a moment, and Harry's smirk grew into a victorious grin before Leclair retorted, "If I was afraid of you, how would we have ended up here in the first place?" The grin faded, and this time Harry could see a small smirk appear on Leclair's face. But Harry wasn't going to let her win.

"Simple, you're afraid of me and being near me and that's why you snapped." Leclair stopped skinning the roots for a moment and challenged, "Well, if we're going to speak on technicalities, then technically, it was you snapped first."

"I didn't snap, I only asked."

"Yes, in a very rude manner."

"Well, you have to admit Leclair, Granger's just a rude girl. Someone has to show her that eventually, otherwise she won't learn." Leclair took some breaths, as if already she was getting frustrated, before she calmly argued, "But to show her within the first few months of first year?" Harry thought on this for a while before he claimed, "The sooner she learns about it, the better." Leclair glared at Harry, her eyes narrowed and she argued, "Maybe, but she didn't need to learn it from you."

"Oh? And who would she learn it from? You? Weasley? Sorry, not Weasley, he can hardly comprehend how to hold a wand." Leclair only rolled her eyes and continued peeling. Disappointed that the game had ended now, Harry went back to his aconite.

At exactly six o'clock, Snape came into the classroom, his dark robes twirling behind him. "Alright, you pupils, get out of here. You're done." Both first years obliged and gathered their things.

Since it was Halloween, the usual floating candles were replaced by floating jack-o-lanterns. Not that that was much of a surprise. What was a surprise, however, was seeing Phoebus reading a note of some kind. Harry peeked over his shoulder and almost groaned at who the note was from: Selene Grint.

Phoebus, suddenly noticing his friend, quickly put away the letter and started, "Hey, Harry, was Professor Snape nice? He didn't look too happy, hehe, but he doesn't look happy at all most of the time, right? What'd he make you do? You smell like aconite and stuff. Did he make you cut aconite or something, that's really dumb, because you know, aconite's poisonous and all that–"

"What did the letter say, Phoebus?" Phoebus immediately stopped talking. As for Malfoy and the rest, they began to take interest in the conversation taking place. Everyone knew that Harry Stidolph couldn't stand Selene Grint for whatever reason, and unfortunately Phoebus Grint was caught in the middle of it all.

Phoebus, knowing he was now caught, took the letter out of his bag and explained, "Basically, it's a note that says 'Hi' and 'Nice to Meet you' and whether we can talk or something like that. She also said something about dead parents and the like..." he trailed off, nervous, afraid of what Harry might do or say. Harry sighed and began piling his plate with food. "If you want," Harry finally replied, "You can talk to her. I think I just haven't been as trusting as I should have been. But, hey, don't let me stop you. Go for it." Phoebus smiled brightly and put the letter away, then waved to Selene over at the Ravenclaws. Selene smiled just as brightly and waved back, and thus the tension for the night had ended. Or so everyone thought.

Before anyone could blink, a rushing figure clothed in purple came bursting through the door of the Great Hall, screaming at the top of his lungs: "TROLL! IN THE DUNGEONS! TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS!" As everyone looked on with equal looks of confusion, Quirrell only stopped running in the middle of the hall before saying, "Thought you ought to know," and fainted as if dead.

The panic in the hall was overwhelming. Thousands of students were dropping their food and just overall screaming, while the teachers seemed to be overwhelmed with the chaos unfolding in front of them. Phoebus, as usual, cockily surmised, "What troll? There's no troll, we would have smelled him by–" Suddenly, his cockiness was interrupted by the sudden whiff of the worst possible smell both werewolves could have smelled in their lives. It smelled like toad pee, mixed in with the scent of moldy, sweaty socks, and wrapped up in human vomit. In fact, both Slytherins puked at the first whiff of it. Harry looked over at the Hufflepuff table and saw that poor Adam Maddison was trying to hold his puke in.

"SILENCE!" The echo of Headmaster Dumbledore's cry was much too loud for Harry's werewolf sensitive ears. Good thing too, otherwise the hall wouldn't have quieted down immediately with the last echo. "Prefects," Dumbledore calmly ordered, "Escort all other students to your common rooms immediately. Staff, you shall come with me to the dungeons to help eliminate the danger."

Obediently, Harry and the other Slytherins followed the older students (all the while looking out for any sign of the troll) into the Common Room where the remainder of the dinner was held there. Soon, Harry began hearing talk of heroism on Ron Weasley's part. "What's going on?" he asked Malfoy, who he knew would have a clear dislike for the prat no matter what he did.

"Apparently he and Marielle Leclair saved the mudblood Granger's life from the troll. Somehow it left the dungeons and managed to get all the way to the girl's bathroom on the first floor." Harry frowned as he processed the information. "Strange, since trolls wouldn't have been able to maneuver those moving staircases, plus...I don't know. This all seems a bit weird for me." Malfoy only shrugged and dived into his treacle tart. Harry, however, wasn't as hungry. Something was off about Hogwarts, and he was going to find out.

**A/N:**

**Hello, wonderful people! This chapter was not the easiest to put together, but I managed it! PRAISE ME! People, if you have a sense of humor, go to and look up Troll in the Dungeon Pranks. They're hysterical, especially if the prankster gets the Quirrell impression right. Onto a more serious note, I know the Leclair girl's name was originally Christabelle, Belle for short, but I've decided it's too cheesy and cliché, so now it's Marielle. However, I'm having doubts about that name as well. So, if you have an idea for a good name or you prefer Christabelle or Marielle, please review and let me know! Regardless, R&R! Cheers!**


	11. Chapter 10

_November 5th, 1991_

_** Dear Harry,**_

_**How are you? It seems like ages ago since you left, and the Tribe hasn't been as lively without you and the other adolescents. This troll news is very disturbing indeed, and while I can't really do anything about it at the moment, I would suggest you watch closely. Guadalupe just reminded me of your impeccable observation skills you learned in her classes...use them! **_

_**Everything back home is normal, or as normal as it can be. Werewolf hunts are becoming more frequent now, apparently because a werewolf named Fenrir Greyback is having hay days left and right all over England. Fortunately nobody knows of our true identities so for the most part we're safe. **_

_**Speaking of safe, how are you holding up against Headmaster Dumbledore? If he's been bothering you too much you need to let us know immediately. We only want for your safety and happiness, Harry...if you can't find that at Hogwarts, then please feel free to tell us. That goes for Phoebus and the other werewolves as well. **_

_**My herbologist job is also doing well...your usual shipment of potions is attached. This time I have to admit I splurged a bit. You'll be fine for a few months with these. Use them wisely. **_

_**Hope everything is going well,**_

_**Richmond**_

* * *

Smiling, yet worrying, Harry folded up the letter sent to him via Hedwig and allowed the snowy owl to devour the remains of his ham. He softly guided his hand down the owl's back, thinking about this piece of news Richmond gave him. Werewolf hunts...they were few, but they were scary.

Harry unfortunately experienced one the fall after he turned nine. They had set up base in Bristol near an old building which the werewolves presumed to be an abandoned Christian orphanage. The good news was they were right, the place was Christian. The bad news was it wasn't abandoned and it wasn't an orphanage either. It was a monastery. Crazy monks with pistols loaded of silver bullets charged at the Tribe during the night of the half moon. Some of the werewolves such as Phoebus, the Betas, and the Stidolphs got out alive, but some of the Gammas weren't so lucky. Harry had nightmares about that hunt for months.

Even here at Hogwarts there's one likely, which is why Harry was so cautious about Selene in the first place. But Selene has proved herself for the most part, thus it just became Selene, Phoebus, Adam, and him. Draco sometimes joined them, but he had other stuff to do, such as a recent detention with one Hermione Granger.

"That ridiculous, no good mudblood!" Well, speak of the devil. With a face as red as Weasley's hair, Draco stormed to the Slytherin table and sat down in a huff next to Harry.

"I take it your detention went well, Draco?" Phoebus asked from across the table, smirking. "Granger was pleasant as usual?" Draco glared at Phoebus and growled, "About as pleasant as a mudblood like her can get." Adam, who was given permission by the Slytherins to sit with them, squirmed uncomfortably in his seat, and it was not unnoticed. "What's got your wand in a knot, Maddison?" Draco asked.

"Draco," Harry cautioned, his amber tones shining a bit in warning, "Adam is a muggle born."

"Oh." Silence. Then, "Well, Adam's different. He's alright. But all the others, they're no good." Adam breathed a sigh of relief and Harry respectfully argued, "Draco, have you ever thought that perhaps others not of mudblood status can act like Granger?" Draco shrugged, "Of course. The other three houses are annoying as I'll get out."

"Then if others not of mudblood status are also annoying, why are mudbloods such a special case?" Draco looked confused and started chuckling before asking Harry, "Too much pumpkin juice, Stidolph?"

"Anyway," Phoebus interrupted before the somewhat political debate got too intense for the dinner table. "How's everyone been doing with that Transfiguration essay?" Everyone within hearing range grumbled at the thought of it when Selene suddenly came running into the Great Hall, her rusty red and braided hair lightly graced with white powder.

"The first snow is here! The first snow is here!" Selene claimed cheerfully as she sat down next to Phoebus. "That's great, Selie," Phoebus responded kindly, as he dusted the snow off of his friend's hair. Harry smirked. Over the course of the next few weeks, Phoebus and Selene have become somewhat inseparable. Save for classes, they're almost always seen together. It was cute, really. With a bright smile on her face, Selene began piling food onto her plate and suggested, "We should go play in the snow. After dinner."

"Why would we do that?" Draco asked, his nose drawn back as if he smelled something horrid. "We'd only get our clothes wet." Selene rolled her eyes at the Malfoy heir and answered, "There are spells that can keep us warm and prevent our clothes from getting wet. And to answer your question, we're kids. We've been cooped up in classes for months now. We should go have fun, at least for a little while." Subconsciously, everyone looked to Harry for the ultimate decision. Noticing the leadership bestowed upon him, Harry thought hard before his decision:

"I think we should. We don't get many opportunities like this these days. We should enjoy ourselves." Selene looked like she was about to burst from excitement while Draco scoffed and rolled his eyes. Nevertheless, Harry offered the Malfoy heir a chance to play.

"And act like an imp? Count me out," came the snarky response. Harry only shrugged and didn't bother to remind Draco that he acts like an imp on a daily basis. A friendly imp, but an imp nonetheless.

"Uh, Harry?" asked timid little Adam beside him. Harry turned to him and asked, "Yes, Adam?" Barely above a whisper, Adam requested, "Can Neville Longbottom play with us?" Both boys turned to the Gryffindor table to find Weasley boasting about his supposedly impeccable duelling abilities, Marielle Leclair (who still made Harry's heart jump slightly) rolling her eyes at her classmate, and Hermione Granger eating quietly, still trying to digest the horrid detention she had with Draco Malfoy. Seems that none of them had a good time.

Then there was Longbottom sitting all the way near the end of the table by himself. Depressed and dejected, Neville picked at his green beans before taking his wand out and admiring it with a sad smile on his face. For some reason known only to the Gods, Harry felt an understanding of the boy's sadness and replied, "Sure, so long as he doesn't act like a crybaby. Won't do any good for him, will it?"

"What?!" Phoebus nearly shouted at his friend. Harry looked to Phoebus and responded, "You have Selene, Adam has Longbottom. It's only fair." Grumbling, Phoebus started picking at his beef while Adam cheerfully ran off to invite the lonely Gryffindor. Chuckling, Draco said to Harry, "Good luck with that."

* * *

After dinner, there was a good five inches of snow on the ground, and the snow kept coming. Selene, being the clever Ravenclaw that she is, cast warming and dry clothing spells on everyone before they headed out. Harry, with Phoebus at his side, was trailed by Selene, who in turn was followed by Adam and Neville. Neville was more than surprised when Adam presented the opportunity to play before he excitedly agreed and swore not to cry on his classmates.

The five soon reached the courtyard but realized that they were not alone. Two boys, both in their soaking Gryffindor robes, were putting together a snowman that looked strongly like Snape. Harry stopped the others and observed the two. They were twins, obviously, by their same facial features and bright red hair. Judging by their fingerless gloves and their holes in their beanies, they were also very poor, but that didn't stop the two. Chuckling, the twins finished putting together the snowman before they cast some sort of spell. The next thing Harry knew, the snowman lit up in bright colors, with the words SNAPE IS AN APE written across the stomach.

The students soon found themselves laughing, despite it being freezing cold, and the twins turned to find the younger ones standing there.

"Well, well, well, George. What have we got here?" asked the first one.

"Hmm...I don't know, Fred. What do you think?" asked the second.

"I believe we found ourselves some little first years," the first one replied all too sweetly. "You mean some little targets, Fred."

"George, you have read my mind," said the one called Fred. Before either of them could do anything, however, Selene jumped out from the group with a snowball in her hand and yelled, "Back off, I'm armed!" The twins looked to each other before putting up their arms in mock surrender. Suddenly, snowballs appeared in their hands and they both said together, "So are we."

It wasn't known who fired that first snowball, because soon afterwards, the greatest snowball fight of all time erupted in that courtyard. It was unevenly matched, but Harry had to hand it to their opponents, they were pros at snowball fights.

Unfortunately, the fight didn't last long, for soon Professor McGonagall swooped in and immediately ceased the flying snowballs with a whish of her wand. "Weasleys! Grints! Stidolph! All of you, come with me at once!" she yelled, her temper about as high as the Headmaster's tower. Knowing better than to disobey, all of the students followed her up to her office.

* * *

When they reached said office, Professor McGonagall conjured seven chairs opposite her desk which the seven students accepted graciously. She then sat in her own chair and seemed to observe each and every one of them. Harry also observed his peers out of the corners of his eyes. The Weasleys, sitting to Harry's left, didn't seem to have a care in the world. They act like this isn't very new to them. On Harry's right, Selene tried to look as innocent as possible, as did Phoebus. Adam wouldn't look their Transfiguration teacher in the eye and Longbottom looked like a lost puppy, unsure of what to do in this situation.

"Fred and George Weasley," Professor McGonagall addressed first, "I expect this kind of behavior from you two. For the act of insulting a teacher and starting a snowball fight with students younger than yourself, you will be serving the usual detention with me tomorrow." The Weasleys stood and bowed to their Head of House before sitting back down. Then, McGonagall turned to the first years and reprimanded, "I trust you won't adopt the habits your older classmates have. I'll also trust that you five were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. Nevertheless, for helping initiate the fight, you will also be serving detention with me tomorrow after classes are finished." Confused, Harry spoke up:

"Excuse me, professor?" McGonagall, with her keen and intimidating glance, looked down at the Slytherin first year and asked, "Yes, Mr. Stidolph?" Harry took a semi deep breath before reporting, "What we did was a simple, childish snowball fight. It wasn't life threatening or anything of the sort, and it certainly wasn't mean-spirited in the least. If I may be so bold to ask, why are we being punished for being kids?" Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow at Harry's argument, then pulled something that seemed a little heavy for her to carry. It's a large book that she places on her desk and she opens it, blazing through the pages so fast it was a blur. Soon, she stopped on a page and commanded, "Come stand by me, Mr. Stidolph."

Harry obliged, wondering what this was all about and whether it will answer his question. He glanced at the page: word after word after word was on the sheet, almost seeming to jumble together due to their lack of space and the tiny writing. Professor McGonagall took what looked to be a magnifying glass and pointed it at the book, instructing in perfect English: "Show me Rule #7,895." The magnifying glass, to Harry's surprise, moved on its own and obeyed the woman, emphasizing the requested rule until it could be read perfectly clearly. "Read out loud, Mr. Stidolph," said Professor McGonagall and she sat back down in her chair. Harry, not really knowing what else to do, looked at the rule and read:

"All students shall not engage in any childish combat, be it mean spirited or light spirited. This includes faux battles, snowball fights, and magical duels in the hallways." Harry looked to the teacher and claimed, "But that's ridiculous!"

"It's the rules, Mr. Stidolph. They're there for a reason, whether you like it or not. Headmaster Dumbledore has always taken care in the greater good for our students, and if it means sacrificing snowball fights in exchange for better health, then so be it."

_Oh_, Harry thought, _So this is Dumbledore's grand idea._ He then looked back to the large book and thought, _I wonder what other rules are Dumbledore's grand idea as well?_

"Does this answer your question, Mr. Stidolph?" Professor McGonagall asked, her tone of voice almost smug, though her face showed nothing but strict and stern. Harry turned back to his Transfiguration professor and replied respectfully, "Yes, Professor."

"Good. Then I shall see you seven tomorrow in my classroom after classes are over." All of the students nodded in acknowledgement before heading out.

* * *

The next day, Harry was a little surprised when Fred and George Weasley pulled him over to talk with him. "Can I help you?" Harry asked, a little scared that perhaps they blame him for the mishap (even though he didn't show it). Both boys dragged Harry off near an old statue before replying (starting with Fred),

"We wanted to apologize, mate–"

"Professor McGonagall is a little strict." Awkwardly, Harry shrugged it off and replied, "Well, it wasn't really your fault, we all kind of–"

"That's not all though. What we also wanted to say is–"

"Rules are a bit off aren't they?" They gave Harry a moment to think before he responded, "Yeah, that one rule is ridiculous, but–"

"But nothing, Harry!"

"Allow us to properly introduce ourselves. My name is George Weasley,"

"And I'm Fred Weasley. As you can tell..."

"We're mischief makers." Harry nodded and said, "Yes, I can see that." But the Weasley twins weren't done yet.

"But we're not just any mischief makers, either."

"Unlike other mischief makers, we have a motivation."

"And that motivation–"

"is to have the freedom to make mischief." Confused, Harry did his best to catch up. "So...what you're saying is...you want freedom?"

Both twins nodded and George (or is it Fred?) suggested, "We were wondering if you, the mysterious Slytherin first year, would like to help us reach that goal."

"Pull pranks with us to make a statement, Harry. With our brilliance–"

"And your sense of justice–"

"We can give life back to Hogwarts!" both shouted triumphantly, too caught up in the moment to care if anyone else is listening at this point. Harry couldn't help but chuckle at the insanity of it all, yet it made sense. Hogwarts and its students deserve freedom. Why should it be denied to them? Fred and George could really aid Harry, against Dumbledore, McGonagall, or whoever. Perhaps this could work. But...

"What's in it for me?" he asked, once again putting on the façade of the Slytherin the twins take him to be, which is quite the complement. The twins looked at each other with the face that said 'Totally saw that coming' before Fred (or is it George?) explained,

"Why, for you we'll give 50% of the credit and the opportunity of a lifetime of course!" Harry thought about this for a bit and then said, "If you guys ever make a business out of this, I want 50% of that too." Both the twins' cheshire smiles told Harry that he just sealed the deal. Thus, with the three way handshake the trio went their separate ways, until the time came for their first move.

**A/N:**

**Whoever told me that senior year was going to be easy and fun and carefree is a big fat liar. It's only October and already I've yet to finish five more college applications, a dance routine, and this chapter. Well, I'm finished with the last two so guess what I get to do now? Yipee. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter because I certainly did. Cheers!**


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